Transit-Oriented Development: Vision & Goals

TOD Policy Statement, April 2024

NJ TRANSIT is pleased to present its Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Policy Statement. Focused on NJ TRANSIT-owned or controlled land, the ` recognizes that walkable, mixed-use development centered around and integrated with transit facilities encourages increased ridership and connects people to their everyday lives, one trip at a time. It sets forth the vision, goals, objectives, and supporting policies that guide development centered around NJ TRANSIT’s transportation facilities, and is intended to serve as a useful resource for prospective development partners, municipalities and broader project stakeholders.

The Policy Statement can be accessed here.

Vision Statement

NJ TRANSIT will leverage its services, assets, staff, and stakeholder partnerships to foster the development of vibrant communities that encourage increased use of transit and non-automotive modes of transportation to access goods, services, resources, and opportunities; expand equitable access to housing and jobs; and, bolster state and regional sustainability and climate-change resilience. 

Goals and Objectives

NJ TRANSIT’s TOD programs, investments, and initiatives are intended to achieve the following goals and objectives within a half-mile (or ten-minute walk) of NJ TRANSIT rail and light rail stations, and bus stations and stops on high-frequency routes (12-minute headways during peak periods in urban counties, and 22-minutes in suburban and rural counties). 

1. Ridership – Increase ridership on NJ TRANSIT services.
   1. Increase ridership that is balanced to align with available and projected capacity.
   2. Increase ridership outside of traditional commuter patterns and within New Jersey. 
       
2. Complete Communities – Promote development of communities in which people of all ages and abilities can easily access work, shopping, healthcare, education, and leisure – the things they need and want to do – with reduced reliance on a personal automotive vehicle.
   1. Include uses that expand residents’ access to daily goods and services within the station area community.
   2. Scale development to meet transit-supportive residential and commercial densities, consistent with station area typologies defined in the Transit Friendly Planning: A Guide for New Jersey Communities (“Transit Friendly Planning Guide”).
   3. Design local streets and other paths so that people feel safe and comfortable accessing destinations via non-automotive modes of transportation, to ensure that the mix of uses and density translate into accessibility and walkability.
       
3. Transportation Choice – Expand access to and viability of transit and alternative, non-automotive modes of transportation.
   1. Leverage land use and urban design to encourage non-automotive modes of transportation.
   2. Create a network of streets and other paths that offer access routes to transit and to other destinations that are safe, complete, direct, varied, redundant, ADA-compliant, and well-appointed routes for all users and all modes of transportation. 
       
4. Equity and Affordability – Expand access to local, regional, and state opportunities and resources.
   1. Spur investment near transit in disinvested communities.
   2. Increase access to affordable housing, jobs, community amenities such as day care, grocery stores, healthcare options, and related resources and opportunities for vulnerable and underserved populations.
       
5. Sustainability – Increase environmental sustainability and resiliency in station area communities.
   1. Prioritize compact, dense community design that reduces auto dependency.
   2. Use sustainable and climate resilient design and materials in development projects, including buildings and landscaping.
       
6. Value Capture – Create and capture value on and around NJ TRANSIT stations.
   1. Increase revenue from recurring fees such as ground lease payments and other project payments, and decrease operating and capital expenses where possible.
   2. Increase revenue from episodic payments such as predevelopment fees, land sales, and shares of capital event transactions.
       
7. Community Engagement – Align with community goals.
   1. Directly engage with local communities in furtherance of prospective projects.
   2. Build on relevant recent community engagement efforts, where possible, to inform and help shape discrete initiatives.
   3. Identify and leverage existing community assets, anchor institutions, emerging technologies and practices for meaningful and inclusive community engagement.
   4. Ensure outreach across the community that is representative of the diversity of project stakeholders, make materials available in English and other prominent languages in the community, and hold outreach events in accessible locations. 
      
       
8. Economy – Strengthen local and regional economies.
   1. Direct investment to assist in revitalization of station area communities, emphasizing a regenerative economy.
   2. Increase residents’ access to opportunities (jobs, education, business ownership, homeownership).
   3. Increase businesses’ access to labor and consumer markets.
   4. Promote use of local developers, Disadvantaged Business Enterprises, and unions, when not otherwise required.