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Transit Terrors: An Ethnographic Study Based on Commuters Traveling

from New Jersey to New York

Alyson Fenelon Professor Chrysafi

ENG 201-01 21 November 2018

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Introduction

Millions of Americans, 100 million

to be more precise, commute to work on a

daily basis (Evans and Wener, “Rail

Commuting Duration and Passenger Stress”

408), whether their form of transportation is

a private or public entity. This substantial

portion of the population are a part of an

interesting subculture of society. The

purpose of this ethnography is to observe the

behavior of those who commute by train and

try to identify why this mode of commuting

adds an extra level of stress to their lives.

As a resident of New Jersey and a

college student in Manhattan, I understand

the commuting process well; being squeezed

between a sneezy woman and a sweaty man

while lacking something to hold onto as the

train shifts and sways down the tracks is

always a pleasure after an eleven-hour day

at school. As most people know, residents of

New York and New Jersey are not the nicest

people. This adds an element of uncertainty

while everyone is pushing and shoving one

another for a spot to be a sardine in the

already too crowded train cars. This reality

is most prevalent during the rush hours of

the day: between 6am-9am and 5pm-8pm.

To most people, going home after a

long day is so desperately needed that they

will do anything to ensure that they arrive

home as quickly as possible. One

unfortunate reality of commuting is that one

cannot necessarily control their commute.

Everything they do relies on the efficiency

of the trains, which from my experience, is

not reliable on most days. If the company on

these trains is not enjoyable and there is no

certainty that you will reach your destination

on time, it begs the question: Why do people

choose to commute? Why do people cram

onto overcrowded trains when they could be

in the comfort of their own vehicles? Why is

stress added to the lives of these individuals

and does this affect other aspects of their

lives? These questions may assist in

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understanding the nature of these commuters

and why they behave in the manner that they

do.

Assumptions/Early Hypotheses

As I entered into this project, I

assumed that the commuter population

would be large and that most people would

be impatient and in a hurry to get to their

destination. As a result, these factors will

influence their behavior as they travel on

their commute. These behaviors may include

pacing, gathering around the door before it

has opened, and pushing to get a spot on the

train. According to “Comparing Stress of

Car and Train Commuters,” “Almost 88% of

all workers get to their jobs by car, with

77.7% driving individual vehicles…while

only 4.6% use some form of public transit.

Only a few major cities are significantly

different in the use of transit modes – New

York, Chicago, and San Francisco have

more people commuting by train than by

car” (111). Based on this research, it was

safe to assume that the commuting

population from New Jersey into New York

City would be a large population.

Based on the literature, and my own

personal experience with commuting into

New York City, it has been noted that the

process of commuting on this route is a

stressful one. It has also been proven that

this stress may have a negative effect on the

body and may even effect other aspects of

one’s life. Evans and Wener emphasize the

fact that this occurrence does not happen

once a day either. These people are exposed

to this type of stress on their way home as

well. The authors write, “There is also

evidence that commuting stress may spill

over into the workplace, possibly affecting

productivity, satisfaction, etc.” (“Comparing

Stress of Car and Train Commuters”).

This commute takes about an hour and a half

in each direction, totaling to roughly three

hours a day. Being under constant stress,

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dealing with rude people pressed up against

you, and not being able to control a delayed

or cancelled train can take a toll on any

person – and to be doing this twice daily

cannot be healthy. The behaviors of the

commuters will reflect those of whom are

worried and stressed about things they

cannot control.

Ethnographic Methods

My primary method used for my

research was participant-observation along

with visual ethnography and a semi-formal

interview with my brother, Tom. I began my

observations in Clifton, NJ at my local train

station. I stood far away from the yellow

line in order to observe the commuters

standing near the platform edge. I observed

them as they waited for the train to arrive

and their behavior while riding the train. I

then transferred in Secaucus Junction to

catch my second train to New York Penn

Station (NYPS). The commuters on both

trains acted in a similar fashion.

In addition to conducting participant-

observation, I also used visual ethnography.

I did this because it is one thing to hear

about a crowded train or platform but it is

another to actually see it. Physically seeing

the behavior of human beings is a lot easier

than trying to visualize it based on a

description. Lastly, I conducted a semi-

formal interview with my brother, Tom, who

has been commuting from NJ to NY for

about a year and a half. I sat down with him

for about ten to fifteen minutes to gain

insight about his experience as a commuter.

Photo 1 - This is a map of the NJ Transit lines that bring commuters in and out of New York. I take the Main Line, which is depicted by the brighter yellow transit line.

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The conversation was insightful, to say the

least, and supported much of what the

literature presented.

Data Analysis

I began my observations in Clifton,

NJ when I arrived at the train station for my

6:46 AM inbound train to Hoboken, NJ.

(Note: I usually take the 5:59 AM to

Hoboken, NJ but I missed my train. This

allowed me to gain a new insight about a

different group of commuters who turned

out to be much different from the usual

crowd I am accustomed to). I got out of my

car a few minutes earlier than I usually did

in order to observe those who were waiting

on the platform. I stood alone, away from

the platform edge, in hopes of being able to

observe everyone without raising suspicion.

In general, people were crowded

together in groups and were standing just

behind the yellow line where the entrance

doors usually come to a halt. To my

surprise, most people were talking with one

another. Not many people had headphones

on or had their faces glued to their phones –

most people were smiling and conversing,

coffees in hand. There was still ten minutes

until the train was scheduled to arrive and

the platform was filling up fast.

As time went by, people began to

step onto the yellow line and look down the

tracks, hoping to summon the train a little

faster I guess. When they didn’t see the

train, they began pacing and looking at their

watches (it was evident that the stress levels

Photo 2 – In Clifton, NJ, commuters crowd around the doors right after the train pulled into the station.

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in them were rising). As the train pulled into

the station, the commuters began crowding

around the doors before the conductors even

had a chance to open them.

I boarded the train, took an aisle seat

in a three-seater and put my headphones in.

There was minimal chatter; just a man on his

cell phone. As the train continued, it became

crowded quickly – people were standing in

the aisles. I got off a few stops later in

Secaucus, NJ. It was here where I

transferred trains in order to get into NY

Penn Station (NYPS). The train from

Secaucus to NYPS was more crowded than

my first train; people were pushing to get on

and became less polite as more and more

people flooded into the cars. I ended up

standing in the aisle towards the back of the

car.

The ride from Secaucus to NYPS is

about nine minutes, if there are no delays or

reasons warranting a reduced speed. Most of

this ride is spent in the tunnel connecting

NY and NJ. Despite this fact, when the train

enters the tunnel, numerous people got up

from their seats and walked down the aisle

towards the exits, like the train would

magically be sitting on Track 11 in NYPS

by the time they reached the door. This led

to more congestion and people pushed their

way through the obviously irritated crowd.

There was no

escape from

the

congestion or

pushing until

we finally

exited the

train and

climbed the

stairs,

bringing us

into an open area known as New York Penn

Station. I then had to board the Uptown A

train but that is a story for a different time.

Photo 3 – Commuters cram onto crowded rail cars. Almost every seat is taken on the way from Secaucus to NYPS, forcing people to stand in the aisles.

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I conducted a brief interview with

my brother, Tom. He has been a commuter

on this route for a year and a half and has

experienced many things during this time.

First, I asked him how he felt about

commuting and his response was, “It’s just

frustrating.” These frustrations stem from a

number of things: a lack of communication

between NJ Transit and their customers,

trespasser fatalities, signal problems,

tugboats crashing into bridges, etc. Despite

all of this, he would never switch to

commuting by car because that entails a

whole other slew of challenges, such as

traffic and added expenses like gas, tolls,

and parking. I also asked him to describe the

different emotions he felt during his

commute in five words: “Stressed.

Frustrated. Annoyed. Tired. Bleh.” The

inconsistency was the aspect that stressed

him out the most. There are so many

different stages that factor into your

commute, like from one train to another

train to a subway and so on, which leaves

more of an opportunity for things to go

wrong. One delay on one line and your

whole commute could be postponed for over

an hour.

This interview confirmed some of

what I found in the literature. Although he

had numerous issues with the commuting

process as a whole, he would never begin to

commute into NY by car. The literature

stated that “…New York, Chicago, and San

Francisco have more people commuting by

train than by car” (Evans and Wener,

“Comparing Stress of Car and Train

Commuters” 111). If everyone feels

similarly to Tom then it would make sense

why these findings are correct. Additionally,

he added that he would never commute by

car because of the expenses of the commute.

The literature stated that, “For many train

riders, the cost of parking in New York City

made driving to work prohibitively

expensive” (Evans and Wener, “Comparing

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Stress of Car and Train Commuters” 112). It

is already an expensive trip between the tolls

and gas money; throw in a parking payment

and people may change their minds about

commuting to New York. Lastly, he

confirmed that stress played a role in his

twice-daily commute. The literature on this

topic was limited but from what was

available on commuters from NJ to NY,

stress became a common denominator,

which could carry over and negatively

impact other aspects of their lives. It is not

known exactly which source causes so much

stress in commuters but it is safe to assume

that it is different for everyone.

As a commuter myself, I was not

entirely surprised by any of my findings. I

experience these same challenges when I

commute to school and I can completely

understand why people are frustrated,

stressed, and tired. Only two findings

surprised me while conducting my primary

and secondary research. The first factor that

I was surprised about was the fact that only

a few major cities are the exception to

commuting to work by car. I knew that a lot

of people commuted by car but I did not

expect such a minimal amount of people to

commute via public transportation. The

second thing that surprised me was the

behavior of those on the 6:46 AM train out

of Clifton, NJ. I have never seen commuters

so happy to be standing on a platform in the

frigid cold before the sun came up. On my

usual train, the 5:59 AM, people do not

speak to one another; everyone keeps to

themselves, listens to music, and tries to stay

warm. It was interesting to witness such a

difference in attitudes even though our trains

are only forty-five minutes apart.

Conclusion

Ultimately, I found that commuters

who travel from New Jersey into New York

City are generally stressed, tired, and

become a bit aggressive when there is

crowding or their commute is negatively

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impacted in any way. Their behavior

demonstrates that they are in a hurry to get

to their destination and that they are not

afraid to throw an elbow towards anyone

who may stand in their way. If the literature

is correct in stating that the stress from

commuting may have an impact on other

aspects of life, I think it is important to

explore options to prevent commuters from

experiencing this. If transit systems decipher

what is causing their commuters so much

stress, maybe they could fix these issues to

the best of their abilities. At the end of the

day, it is all about providing your customers

with the best available product and making

sure that the customer is happy about it.

Miserable commuters will lead to

complaints which may cause people to find

a different mode of commuting, whether that

is the bus or driving themselves.

The stress aspect of this particular

commute should also be investigated more

because it is affecting the health and well-

being of thousands of individuals on a daily

basis. Life is stressful and hectic enough as

it is – the last thing anyone needs is to add to

that craziness and, as a result, impact other

parts of their lives in a negative way.

Commuters are simply people who are

trying to get their destinations in a timely

fashion with little or no disruptions. They

should not be experiencing these negative

emotions. Further investigation should focus

on the stress caused by commuting and what

can be done to reduce it. Life is stressful but

that does not mean that your commute needs

to be.

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Works Cited

Evans, Gary W., and Richard E. Wener. “Comparing Stress of Car and Train

Commuters.” ScienceDirect, vol. 14, no. 2, 2011, pp. 111-116,

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847810000902. Accessed 5

November 2018.

Evans, Gary W., and Richard E. Wener. “Rail Commuting Duration and Passenger

Stress.” Scopus, vol. 25, no. 3, 2006, pp. 408-412,

https://www.scopus.com/record/display.uri?eid=2-s2.0-

33746401046&origin=inward&txGid=f10d881fbe1594c32d0a69fa86118878. Accessed 5

November 2018.

Fenelon, Tom. Personal Interview. 13 November 2018.

NJ Transit Service Map. The Hudson Terminal Plan. 2018. Real Transit,

http://www.realtransit.org/htp1.php.

Wener, Richard E., et al. “Running for the 7:45: The effects of public transit improvements on

commuter stress.” Transportation, vol. 30, no. 2, 2003, pp. 203-220,

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1023%2FA%3A1022516221808.pdf. Accessed

12 November 2018.

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Field Notes

Waiting for the 6:46 AM train: - Lots of people on the platform - Not many waiting in their cars - Commuters are standing in groups – few standing behind the groups alone - People are chatty and friendly - Standing on or just behind the yellow line - People looking down the platform for the train - Pacing up and down - Looking at their watches - People turning around and looking at me

o Weird looks o Can they tell I’m not a regular on this train???

- Not many on their phones or listening to music - Smiling and pleasant - Lots holding travel coffee mugs

Boarding the 6:46 AM train:

- Walking towards platform edge as train approaches - Crowd around the unopened doors - Try to do their best to get on first - Some hang back and wait for everyone else to get on first

On the 6:46 AM train:

- Most of the preferred seats are taken - I find an open aisle seat in a three seater - Most people have head phones in - Minimal chatter - Some doing work on laptops or iPads - I put headphones in and close my eyes - A few stops later – woman taps me and asks me to move

o I moved to let her sit in the middle o Between me and a woman

- People standing in the aisles and vestibules - Playing games on their phones - Still minimal chatter despite the number of people on the train

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Transferring at Secaucus Junction: - A lot of people exit (about half of the train) - The rest continue into Hoboken, NJ - Go upstairs – everyone heads to Tracks A & B (where trains to NYPS arrive) - Some are running, others speed walking, others taking their time - Lots of people looking at the boards (tells you when and where the trains are expected to

arrive and if there are any delays) - Many people looking at their watches - Train pulls into the station

Train to NYPS:

- People crowd around the doors before they open - Shove to get onto the already crowded train - People in every seat and standing in the aisles - People walking towards doors even though train is still about 7 minutes away from NYPS - Makes the already crowded aisles more crowded - People in aisles irritated - People stand up as we pull into the station – still aren’t by the platform yet - Train stops on the platform - People get pushy when trying to exit - Most people rushing off the platform and into the station