Every NJ Transit lot located in Wayne will be affected. Mother’s Park & Ride on Route 23 north, Willowbrook Mall and the brand new Park & Ride on Route 23 south. Flyers were placed on cars Jan. 24 explaining the upcoming change.

“The cost of operation on our parking facilities has increased,” said Dan Stessel, a spokesman for NJ Transit. “The rate will include insurance, maintenance, utilities, and snow removal. We’re keeping in line with other parking decks in the area.”

Fees include $2 a day or $25 monthly. For convenience, commuters will be able to pay for parking from ticket vending machines as you purchase your bus ticket or pass.

Since 2002, NJ Transit says more than 10,000 new parking spaces have been added to the system, and many existing facilities have received upgrades including new lighting, repaving, re-striping or improved payment systems.

Commuters are not happy with the added cost to park their vehicles and some feel that the people in charge have been secretive and misleading about what’s going on.

“First they said there wouldn’t be any charge for parking, which I read in the Wayne Today. Then they go back and say they will start charging,” said Tom Siebert, of Wayne.

He added, “We bought our house in Wayne, as opposed to, say Montclair, was because parking for commuters was free. Now that’s no longer the case. They are losing a key selling point for New York commuters to purchase a home in the region.”

Angelica Swierad, a Wayne resident, who uses the new NJ Transit Park & Ride on Route 23 to attend school in New York City, said it may offer a positive aspect.

“If they assign spots that would be a great help,” she said.
However the added cost she sees could be a burden on daily commuters.
“It’s different for me because my parents pay for this for me to go to school,” she said. “But for workers everyday with their bus passes and now parking this bad especially with the recession and the economy the way it is, I feel for them.”