NJ Transit strike looms: What could happen, how to get around

Negotiations for the agency and the union are underway right now with hopes to reach a last-minute agreement

Well, here's the latest that we know right now. Engineers could walk off the job at midnight

NJ Transit is offering park and ride bus service from four locations

And strike or not, there is no transit service for Shakira's concert tonight or tomorrow

Fox News, Duarte Giordino is live in Newark. Duarte, what are you hearing from commuters tonight

commuters are so frustrated at tasha bianca you know i've been on the phone with the union all day

long tracking developments and as of two minutes ago still no deal they say both sides are slinging

it out and it looks like this could go down to the very last minute really frustrating commuters

and you can feel the tension in the air right now the loudspeaker if you walk through the newark

Penn Station keeps reminding people, get to your final destination by 11.59 p.m

And folks, they're checking their phones, calling Ubers, trying to get people and let them know that don't get stranded

They're trying to avoid shelling out big bucks for a car service. Now, if engineers walk off the job at midnight, it would be New Jersey's first major rail strike in more than 40 years

NJ Transit is the third largest commuter rail system in the country, and a strike would shut it down

The agency has a backup plan, but officials admit it would only serve 20 percent of riders

just one in five people who rely on this service. And this leaves many commuters upset and scrambling to find affordable

and that is the key word, affordable alternatives. Terrified. As a commuter to New York, it's certainly something that I hope doesn't happen

I use it at least twice a week We have meetings regularly throughout the state of New Jersey and sometimes in New York But we really mostly worried about New York getting to New York This has been brewing for a while and why does it have to be gladiatorial Couldn

they find common ground without making Joe Public suffer for all of this

She's right. Joe Public is suffering. Now, this all centers on pay. The Brotherhood

of locomotive engineers and trainmen says their members haven't had a contract in tune since 2019

and they want an average salary of $170,000 a year. And while talks continue, this disruption

has already started. NJ Transit canceled service this week's Shakira concert at Medlife Stadium

and Beyonce's show next week could also be affected once again. If there is no deal by midnight

then the train service, NJ Transit, will shut down and that's going to really impact those first shift

workers on Friday morning trying to find an alternative way to get to work. In Newark

Duarte Geraldino, Fox 5 News. Bianca, Natasha? Yeah, it's going to be such a headache, no doubt

All right, Duarte, thank you. And if the strike does happen, NG Transit has a contingency plan

in place. Starting on Monday, Park and Ride Service will be operating at first-come, first-served

basis from four regional lots. They're located at Secaucus Junction, Woodbridge Center Mall

Hamilton and PNC Arts Center. The destinations are the Port Authority Bus Terminal, Harrison

Path Station, Newark Penn, and New York. NJ Transit says it will enhance peak period service

on existing New York bus routes in close proximity to the rail stations. And remember, you can stay

up to date on all of these stories with the Fox local app on your phone. Download the app to watch

our live newscast and more wherever you are. We're going to have another update coming up at 6 30