NJ Transit customers want refunds after a summer of delays. Here's why the agency is saying no.
NEWARK, N.J. — Some NJ Transit customers affected by recent service disruptions want refunds, but the agency says it won't provide them.
It comes after a number of delays, temporary suspensions and other disruptions in recent months.
Customers told CBS News New York they would rather just forget the days they had to spend hours waiting on packed platforms, but they can't get back the money they spent on their fares.
The transit agency says they don't offer refunds for delayed trains and buses, but customers can use their tickets for detours, including bus routes, in the event of major delays. Unused tickets can also be saved for another trip within 30 days of purchase.
A spokesperson for NJ Transit says recent service disruptions are, in part, why the agency offered free fares for a week and that refunds or complimentary tickets are routinely offered "on a case-by-case basis."
"I was basically just ripped off"
Customer Breyson Tacza waited about two hours on July 21 after spending $16 on his fare. He said the alternative means of transportation offered, such as bus routes, wouldn't work for him, so he wound up catching a ride from Secaucus to New Brunswick with a fellow Rutgers University student.
"Nothing. Nothing back and I was just basically ripped off," he said.
Tacza added that he hasn't had to use NJ Transit lately, so he never had an opportunity to use his July 21 ticket on another trip.
"Seeing this happen to me is basically like saying, hey, we're gonna steal from you. It's not fair, for any college student, or any person," he said.
NJ Transit blames those July 21 delays, which impacted 45 trains, on a power company's wire falling onto Amtrak's wires.
N.J. congressman wants Amtrak to reimburse NJ Transit customers
Earlier this month, New Jersey Congressman Josh Gottheimer said he wants to make Amtrak reimburse NJ Transit customers for major delays because it owns the tracks and wires NJ Transit uses.
"Amtrak just isn't doing enough to keep their infrastructure in good shape," Gottheimer said on Aug. 12.
In response to Gottheimer's proposal, Amtrak says they are working hard to improve the northeast corridor and their infrastructure is not the only cause of delays.