RELEASE: June 26, 2001

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WILLINGBORO, NJ, June 26, 2000 - Burlington County and NJ TRANSIT officials today introduced a new bus service aimed at customers who are participating in the Work First NJ program.

For a one-dollar fare, BurLink buses will take customers to work locations, job training and educational sites, county facilities, medical and child care centers, and other destinations. The service, the first in New Jersey specifically aimed at Work First NJ participants, is available to anyone.

"Under Governor Whitman’s Work First NJ initiative, NJ TRANSIT is working in partnership with the public and private sectors to improve transit services by making them available to the broadest segment of our residents," said New Jersey Transportation Commissioner and NJ TRANSIT Board Chairman James Weinstein. "We are pleased to be working with Burlington County and other counties to augment existing transportation services to help individuals who leave the welfare rolls to get to jobs and other destinations."

"New Jersey is trying to help people find new work opportunities," said NJ TRANSIT Executive Director Jeffrey A. Warsh. "It’s NJ TRANSIT’s job to get them to those opportunities, and BurLink demonstrates our commitment to work with local officials to do just that."

Work First NJ is the state’s welfare reform program. It helps former welfare recipients move away from their reliance on federal assistance and into the job market. The program provides support in various areas, including transportation, that helps people stay in their jobs. Department of Human Services Commissioner Michele K. Guhl said programs like BurLink will help people leaving Work First become self-reliant.

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"Our clients tell us that transportation is one of the key barriers to holding down a job," Guhl said. "If we can help eliminate that barrier, we can ensure that more people join the workforce and stay there."

The BurLink service will operate weekdays from approximately 6:30 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. Initially, buses will run between Pemberton and Mount Holly. The route will provide connections to major NJ TRANSIT bus lines in South Jersey.

In addition, buses will deviate up to three-quarters of a mile from their preset route to pick up passengers by request. Passengers must call 1-800-836-0580 during the route’s operating hours if they wish to be picked up at any location not along the regular route.

"This is another segment of our Smart Growth plan for Burlington County," said Burlington County Freeholder Director Jim Wujcik. "We plan on making BurLink an integral link between the job market and the labor force."

The service’s $450,000 cost is funded with $250,000 in federal funds, of which $200,000 is provided from the Job Access and Reverse Commute (JARC) program. JARC was created as part of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21^st Century (TEA-21), which President Clinton signed into law in 1998. NJ TRANSIT has provided $150,000, while the New Jersey Department of Labor added $50,000.

NJ TRANSIT is the nation’s only statewide public transportation system providing bus, rail and light rail services for 352,000 daily commuters on 177 bus and light rail routes and 12 rail lines. It is the third largest transit system in the country with 161 rail stations and more than 17,000 bus stops linking major points in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia.