NJ TRANSIT CampusPass+

NJ TRANSIT is introducing CampusPass+, a new partnership program designed to make public transportation more accessible and affordable for college students across New Jersey. Through this initiative, participating colleges and universities will pay a flat, per-student transportation fee each semester. In return, enrolled students will receive NJ TRANSIT travel credits loaded onto their accounts—with a 50% bonus provided by NJ TRANSIT.

There are approximately 400,000 college students attending institutions in New Jersey who could be eligible for this program. If each college were to pay $100 per semester per student, this program could generate up to $80 million in revenue, much of it incremental.

How It Works:

  • Participating institutions pay NJ TRANSIT a negotiated per-student rate each semester.
  • Each student receives transit credit in the NJ TRANSIT Mobile App equal to 150% of that amount (e.g., $100 paid = $150 in usable credit).
  • Credits can be used on NJ TRANSIT buses, trains, and light rail, offering flexibility and convenience for students commuting, traveling home, or exploring the region.

Benefits:

  • Students: Enjoy greater mobility with discounted travel and no upfront personal cost.
  • Colleges: Offer a tangible student benefit that supports sustainability, equity, and accessibility goals.
  • NJ TRANSIT: Encourages lifelong transit habits and increases ridership among a key demographic.
     

Pilot & Rollout:

The program will launch as a pilot with select institutions in Fall 2025, with plans to expand statewide in 2026 based on feedback and demand.

Contact:

Colleges interested in joining the pilot can contact NJ TRANSIT’s University Relations team at [email protected] for more details.

Costs:

Because the NJ TRANSIT portion of the program is provided in credit, there is no financial outlay or direct cost to the agency to provide this program.

Further, much of the ridership/revenue generated by this program would be incremental, and all participants would only utilize existing services, meaning there would be little to no cost to NJ TRANSIT.

If students fully utilize their transit credits, NJ TRANSIT would lose out on the incremental revenue represented by the 50% bonus provided (but again, it would not cost the agency anything to provide.)

If students do not use the full value of their credits, NJ TRANSIT would retain the revenue from unused credits, offsetting some of the bonus costs.

Notes

  • Credit would be non-refundable, non-transferrable, and only valid while the student is enrolled at the university
  • Credit could be rolled across semesters.
  • Printed tickets would only be provided in extremely limited situations.
  • CampusPass+ credit could not be used to purchase NJT Student Pass (which is already discounted)
  • While possible that this program could cannibalize Student Pass sales, the negotiated per-student fee is likely to not be high enough to adequately serve the travel needs/ticket purchase behavior of commuting students.
  • Ideally this program/fee would be implemented campus-wide, though it is possible that some universities would elect to make it an optional add-on, which would likely mean less enrollment.