Founded | 1974 |
---|---|
Headquarters | 253 Edwards Avenue, Calverton, New York |
Locale | Eastern Long Island |
Service area | North and South Forks |
Service type | Line run, contract service |
Alliance | International Motor Coach Group |
Routes | 6 operated by Hampton Jitney 2 operated by and On Demand Zone as Suffolk County Transit |
Stops | 18 in Manhattan 2 airport connections 10 for Montauk service 5 for Westhampton service 15 for North Fork service |
Hubs | The Omni (Southampton) Calverton Terminal (Calverton) |
Fleet | 49 for line runs 36 for contract operations |
Chief executive | Geoffrey Lynch |
Website | Hampton Jitney |
Hampton Jitney is a family owned, premier commuter motorcoach company, based in Southampton, NY, operating three primary routes from the east end of Long Island (The Hamptons and the North Fork) to New York City. Hampton Jitney also operates charter and tour services, along with local transit bus service in eastern Suffolk County under contract with Suffolk County Transit.
Hampton Jitney was founded in 1974 with a single van by James Davidson, a former advertising art director, who lived in the Hamptons and wanted to establish a convenient means for traveling in the Hamptons, especially for those without a driver's license. [1] [2]
Initially, the company used vans instead of buses, operating on the theory of a share taxi service among the little communities of The Hamptons. The company has retained a name which no longer describes its main service and fleet.
The founder saw a need for a new transit option for people travelling between New York City and the popular Hamptons region of Long Island. The area has long been served by the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), but by the 1970s poor track conditions on its Montauk Branch resulted in lengthy trip times and delayed trains. Rebuilding the Montauk Branch in 1978 and 1979 resulted in quicker and more reliable trips, but the non-electrified single track line limited train frequency. The LIRR does maintain a number of passing sidings along the Montauk Branch that would allow more frequent service. By the late 1970s Hampton Jitney acquired a fleet of coaches. In the 1980s Hampton Jitney services had expanded to the point where the company runs roughly hourly service year-round on its Montauk Line and service between 2 and 3 hours on its Westhampton, and North Fork line. The company also started a charter service during this time.
In 2006 Hampton Jitney acquired the line run and charter business from Sunrise Coach Lines, based in Greenport, LI. This gave Hampton Jitney its third line, The North Fork Line. In 2007 the Jitney (as it is often called) started a direct service to and from Brooklyn on its Montauk and North Fork lines. In 2008 a direct service to and from lower Manhattan was started on its Montauk line. Sunrise Coach lines continues to operate as a provider of School Bus routes and operator for the 8A, 10D, 10E, and S92 routes for Suffolk County Transit, as well as operations of the 10A, 10B, 10C, and S94 lines under its own banner. Hampton Jitney's operations are headquartered at The Omni in Southampton. It opened a second base in Calverton in 2015. [3] In 2021, following the elimination of SCT Route 10A, Suffolk County Transit Launched a Pilot Program known as the Southampton/Sag Harbor On Demand Zone, as a replacement to the 10A. The County Contracted Hampton Jitney to Operate the vehicles while Via Transportation was Contracted to run the technical side of the new On Demand Area. With the Suffolk County Transit Redesign, the pilot program is expected to expand to East Hampton and Montauk and replace bus routes 10B and 10C.
As of 10/29/23, Hampton Jitney Continues to solely operate Suffolk Transit's 10B and 10C bus routes, as well as the Southampton/Sag Harbor On Demand Zone and in 2024, bus routes 10B and 10C will be replaced by the East Hampton and Montauk On Demand Zone, which will continue to be operated by Hampton Jitney. The New East Hampton On Demand zone was initially supposed to launch on the date of the Suffolk Transit Redesign, but due to a manufacturer vehicle recall, it has been delayed until at least January 2024. The current status of bus 1011, the only bus Hampton Jitney used to co-run the S92 with Sunrise Coach Lines, is unknown, however, is pending retirement by Suffolk Transit. Sunrise Coach Lines now operates routes 80 and 92 as of 10/29/23.
Since October 11, 2010, the Hampton Jitney is the only year-round transportation provider between New York City and the North Fork on weekends and major holidays. The LIRR service along the Greenport Branch was cut back in the second round of major MTA budget cuts. [4] Since then, year-round weekend and holiday service to/from Greenport on the LIRR has been restored.
Hampton Jitney operates three primary routes. All eastbound trips begin at 96th Street and make various pickup stops along Lexington Avenue and westbound trips drop off along Third Avenue, unless otherwise noted.
Primary routes
Special services
The Boston Jitney is a service that runs between Southampton and the Prudential Center in Downtown Boston. The bus stops in Southampton, Hampton Bays, Farmingville, and Port Jefferson before taking the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry to Bridgeport, CT. From the Bridgeport ferry terminal it runs express to Boston. It then stops at an MBTA station in the nearby suburb of Newton, Massachusetts before terminating in Downtown Boston. There were 13 buses scheduled to operate along the Boston route in 2013.
Hampton Jitney buses (not counting the Suffolk Transit-branded buses) require reservations, and limit the use of cell phones. The company provides refreshment service on all buses. Seasonal services are also offered to Boston and Florida. The trip via the Jitney is often quicker by an hour or more, when road congestion is not severe. A prepaid, discounted 12-trip coupon book, called a "Valuepack" is offered, usually around November and December. Most buses finish in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, but some also go to Upper West Side and some only go to Lower Manhattan or Downtown Brooklyn.
Hampton Jitney's charter service include one day trips to Broadway Shows, Giant and Jets games at Giants Stadium, and regional events such as the annual Philadelphia Flower Show. Multiple day trips are also scheduled to points such as Atlantic City, and New England. Civic and Charitable Organizations within the 5 towns of Long Island's east end charter Hampton Jitney busses for special trips to New York City as fundraisers for these groups. Due to the very limited profile maintained by the Long Island Railroad (LIRR) on the east end, it is rare, if ever, that the LIRR is called upon for extra services such as these.
The Long Island Rail Road, often abbreviated as the LIRR, is a railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County on Long Island. The railroad currently operates a public commuter rail service, with its freight operations contracted to the New York and Atlantic Railway. With an average weekday ridership of 354,800 passengers in 2016, it is the busiest commuter railroad in North America. It is also one of the world's few commuter systems that runs 24/7 year-round. It is publicly owned by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which refers to it as MTA Long Island Rail Road. In 2022, the system had a ridership of 70,342,700, or about 253,800 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2023.
Hampton Bays is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Town of Southampton in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York. It is considered as part of the region of Long Island known as The Hamptons. The population was 13,603 at the 2010 census.
Westhampton Beach is an incorporated village in the Town of Southampton, in Suffolk County, on the South Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,721.
Riverhead is a census-designated place (CDP) roughly corresponding to the hamlet by the same name located in the Town of Riverhead in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The CDP's population was 13,299 at the 2010 census.
Southampton, officially the Town of Southampton, is a town in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, partly on the South Fork of Long Island. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the town had a population of 69,036. Southampton is included in the stretch of shoreline prominently known as the Hamptons.
Montauk Highway is an east–west road extending for 95 miles (153 km) across the southern shore of Long Island in Suffolk County, New York, in the United States. It extends from the Nassau County line in Amityville, where it connects to Merrick Road, to Montauk Point State Park at the very eastern end of Long Island in Montauk. The highway is known by several designations along its routing, primarily New York State Route 27A (NY 27A) from the county line to Oakdale and NY 27 east of Southampton. The portion of Montauk Highway between Oakdale and Southampton is mostly county-maintained as County Route 80 and County Route 85.
The South Fork of Suffolk County, New York is a peninsula in the southeastern section of the county on the South Shore of Long Island. The South Fork includes most of the Hamptons. The shorter, more northerly peninsula is known as the North Fork.
New York State Route 27 (NY 27) is a 120.58-mile (194.05 km) long state highway that runs east–west from Interstate 278 (I-278) in the New York City borough of Brooklyn to Montauk Point State Park on Long Island, New York. Its two most prominent components are Sunrise Highway and Montauk Highway, the latter of which includes the Montauk Point State Parkway. NY 27 acts as the primary east–west highway on southern Long Island east of the interchange with the Heckscher State Parkway in Islip Terrace. The entire route in Suffolk, Nassau, and Queens counties were designated by the New York State Senate as the POW/MIA Memorial Highway. The highway gives access to every town on the South Shore. NY 27 is the easternmost state route in the state of New York, as well as the longest highway on Long Island.
The Montauk Branch is a rail line owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The line runs the length of Long Island, 115 miles (185 km) from Long Island City to Montauk. However, in LIRR maps and schedules for public use, the term Montauk Branch refers to the line east of Babylon; service from Jamaica to Babylon is covered by separate Babylon Branch schedules, while the line west of Jamaica is currently unused for passenger service. A select number of Montauk Branch trains operate via the Main Line during peak hours.
The Ronkonkoma Branch is a rail service operated by the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) in the U.S. state of New York. On LIRR maps and printed schedules, the "Ronkonkoma Branch" includes trains running along the railroad's Main Line from Hicksville to Ronkonkoma, and between Ronkonkoma and the Main Line's eastern terminus at Greenport. The section of the Main Line east of Ronkonkoma is not electrified and is referred to as the Greenport Branch.
Suffolk County Transit is the provider of bus services in Suffolk County, New York, on Long Island and is an agency of the Suffolk County government. It was founded in 1980 as a county-run oversight and funding agency for a group of private contract operators which had previously provided such services on their own. While the physical maintenance and operation of the buses continue to be provided by these providers, other matters ranging from bus purchases to route and schedule planning to fare rules are set by Suffolk Transit itself.
The Sag Harbor Branch was a branch of the Long Island Rail Road that was the eastern terminal on the south shore line of Long Island from 1869 to 1895 and then was a spur from Bridgehampton to Sag Harbor, New York from 1895 to 1939.
The Long Island Rail Road is a railroad owned by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in the U.S. state of New York. It is the oldest United States railroad still operating under its original name and charter. It consolidated several other companies in the late 19th century. The Pennsylvania Railroad owned the Long Island Rail Road for the majority of the 20th century and sold it to the State in 1966.
Eastport was a railroad station built on the former Manorville Branch of the Long Island Rail Road in Eastport, New York. It was opened in 1870 and closed in 1958. It was the easternmost station along both branches in the Town of Brookhaven.
Glendale was a Long Island Rail Road station along the Lower Montauk Branch, located in Glendale, Queens at Edsall Avenue and 73rd Street, near Central Avenue, at the All Faiths Monuments factory for the All Faiths Cemetery. This station had two "platforms" which were just strips of pavement besides the tracks signed as the station, and two tracks.
The Cannonball is a seasonal named train operated by the Long Island Rail Road between Penn Station in New York City and the Montauk station on Long Island, New York. The train operates from May through October, running Fridays to Montauk and Sundays to New York.