By Joseph Morales

Six Flags Great Adventure is by far one of the most popular amusement parks in the Northeast. Located about 70 miles from NYC, the park is known for its jaw-dropping roller coasters and fantasy-themed rides. In 2021 according to AECOM, Six Flags Great Adventure attracted more than 2.9 million visitors, making it a premier family recreation destination. As COVID-19 concerns have eased since then, the number of visitors in 2022 and 2023 was likely higher. 

                  Given Six Flags’ location, it is no surprise that many of the park’s visitors come from New York City as well as from all corners of New Jersey. After all, Six Flags describes the park’s location as being “…conveniently located off I-195 in Jackson, NJ between New York and Philadelphia” on its website. Additionally, Great Adventure is on almost every list of top amusement parks near NYC including on popular sites such as TimeOut NYC and SecretNYC.

                  Unfortunately like many places in New Jersey, getting to the park from NYC or anywhere else is not exactly a “Great Adventure”, especially by public transportation. For many years, NJ Transit operated the 308 express bus from both Newark Penn Station and the Port Authority Bus Terminal(PABT) in Manhattan. The service even came with special theme park discounts as recently as last year where transit riders were able to save on tickets to either Great Adventure or Hurricane Harbor. To the likely dismay of riders, the service was discontinued this year with little explanation as to why from NJ Transit. While the agency is facing a nearly $1 billion deficit, the agency has not pursued any other major service cuts. The loss of Great Adventure service is almost certain to make it harder for guests to get to the park and make the most of what it has to offer.

                  As Great Adventure is located almost 2 hours from NYC in a lower-density suburban area, one may question the need for public transportation to the amusement park. However, it is important to note that 54% of NYC residents and 12.3% of NJ residents do not have a car. As Great Adventure is truly a regional destination, ensuring that everyone throughout the region can get there is critical to ensuring as many guests as possible have access to the park. Additionally, since Great Adventure and Hurricane Harbor are among the few theme parks of their kind near NYC, public transit can be the difference maker in which theme parks get customers. Outside of access, there is often congestion in Great Adventure’s parking lot due to the immense amount of cars traveling in and out of the facility. At closing time, congestion may worsen as many vehicles attempt to exit at the same time. This creates inconvenience for motorists and prevents them from making the most of their time since they often leave earlier to beat traffic. 

           To improve mass transit to Great Adventure, NJ Transit could take numerous steps. One and the most clear would be to reinstate the 308 express bus service. If the reasoning was due to budget constraints, than NJ Transit will need to make other moves to balance its budget and obtain funding. This is an issue that is much larger than Great Adventure bus service. However, if the route were to be reinstated, NJ Transit would likely want to run the route more later in the day and make its scheduling less confusing. According to a Reddit Post from 2023, the 308 bus did not run to Great Adventure after 9:30AM. This eliminated the bus as a travel option for those who plan to get to the park later in the day. Additionally, the scheduling of bus trips was quirky to say the least. While buses were scheduled to leave at certain times, they could depart sooner if they were full or later if they were empty. This left park-goers unsure as to when they could get to the park, making it hard to plan stays and coordinate meeting others at the park. Also, if a bus filled up, travelers may have been forced to make alternate travel plans, causing them to lose valuable time at the park.

             To remedy these issues, NJ Transit can simply run service solely based on daily ridership the way it does its other bus routes. NJ Transit likely used demand-based/fixed scheduling in an effort to get as many riders to the park as early as possible. Though this does have its benefits, the risk of unreliable service for many may outweigh the benefit of some people being able to leave to Great Adventure sooner. Solely having fixed-scheduling on the other hand, would have buses scheduled at times NJ Transit knows ridership warrants it the most, making service more accessible for more people. In addition, fixed-scheduling may make transit service more sustainable as it could be easier for NJ Transit to recoup more of the route’s operating cost in fare revenue.

               Outside of scheduling, NJ Transit can look to offer bus service from more locations. Buses from Newark and the PABT do serve a substantial amount of riders in the region. However, as commuting into either Newark or Midtown Manhattan can be tedious, these locations are not accessible to everyone. To help mitigate this issue, NJ Transit can add service from other travel hubs such as the Eltingville Transit Center on Staten Island and the Journal Square Transportation Center in Jersey City. This could make Great Adventure transit service accessible to more riders and reduce congestion at the park. Transit service can also make the park more desirable to visit by providing people an alternative to driving on the NJ Turnpike and I-195, which are among New Jersey’s busiest highways. NJ Transit can also consider bus service from the Hamilton Rail Station, which is the closest NJ Transit train station to Great Adventure. 

                   Besides providing transit service itself, there are several additions NJ Transit and Six Flags can pursue to make public transit more compelling to park-goers. One could be the ability to purchase tickets at the bus terminal via machines or kiosks, saving riders time at the park. Additionally, Great Adventure buses can include luggage racks for those staying at the soon-to-open Six Flags Savannah Sunset Resort and Spa on the theme park campus. Above all, NJ Transit could work with Six Flags for buses to stop closer to the entrance of the theme park. Currently, all buses arriving at the Great Adventure must park at the southwest corner of the parking lot and get there via a circuitous route on the Six Flags’ inner roadways. Couple with a long walk to the gate; it can be 15 minutes or more between when one sees signs for Six Flags and when they reach the entrance of the park. These changes would help to substantially reduce the time between when people arrive and can actually enter the theme park. 

                   As Great Adventure is a premier destination in the country’s most transit-dependent region, it is only fitting that it is well connected to the NYC area by public transportation. Hopefully, NJ Transit can find a transit solution that works for everyone and ensures that a trip to Six Flags Great Adventure can truly be a “Great Adventure” for those who rely on mass transit.

Works Cited

“Directions to the Park.” Six Flags, https://www.sixflags.com/greatadventure/plan-your-visit/directions. Accessed 21 April 2024.

Fuller, Corey. “The Best Amusement Parks Near NYC (2024).” Secret NYC, 18 May 2023, https://secretnyc.co/best-amusement-parks-nyc/. Accessed 21 April 2024.

Gorra, Jeff. “New Jersey Has One Of The Lowest Rate Of Car Ownership in America.” WRAT 95.9, 19 May 2023, https://wrat.com/2023/05/19/new-jersey-has-one-of-the-lowest-rate-of-car-ownership-in-america/. Accessed 21 April 2024.

Gralish, Tom, and Thomas Fitzgerald. “NJ Transit wants to raise fares 15% to stay ahead of budget shortfall.” Philadelphia Inquirer, 4 March 2024, https://www.inquirer.com/transportation/nj-transit-fare-hike-proposal-20240304.html. Accessed 21 April 2024.

New York City Department of City Planning-Transportation. “Car Ownership in NYC.” Tableau, 24 November 2022, https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/dcptransportation/viz/ACSProfiles/Dashboard1. Accessed 21 April 2024.

“New York to Six Flags Great Adventure – 3 ways to travel via train, and bus.” Rome2Rio, https://www.rome2rio.com/s/New-York/Six-Flags-Great-Adventure. Accessed 21 April 2024.

“NJ TRANSIT OFFERS SPECIAL SAVINGS TO SIX FLAGS! |.” NJ Transit, 19 May 2023, https://www.njtransit.com/press-releases/nj-transit-offers-special-savings-six-flags. Accessed 21 April 2024.

Refuerzo, Francisco. “Global Attractions Attendance Report-The Americas.” AECOM, https://aecom.com/wp-content/uploads/documents/reports/AECOM-Theme-Index-2021.pdf. Accessed 21 April 2024.

Six Flags Savannah Sunset Resort & Spa.” Six Flags, https://www.sixflags.com/savannahsunset?utm_campaign=SFGAD_2024&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_content=savannah_sunset&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwlZixBhCoARIsAIC745BxPoG4vaG2n-ftNjUDHzmA143r14ZgUrd19XQQxFV42cjsjItTVnEaAmLmEALw_wcB. Accessed 22 April 2024.

the_D_clan. “Six Flags Great Adventure Bus Operations (NJ Transit 308) : r/sixflags.” Reddit, 29 May 2023, https://www.reddit.com/r/sixflags/comments/13uhgpq/six_flags_great_adventure_bus_operations_nj/. Accessed 21 April 2024.

TimeOut Contributors, et al. “12 Best Amusement Parks Near NYC For For A Thrilling Excursion.” TimeOut, 23 May 2023, https://www.timeout.com/newyork/attractions/day-trips-amusement-parks-worth-the-admission-arcades-amusements. Accessed 21 April 2024.