Transit-Oriented Development
Transit oriented development, or TOD, is generally defined as mixed-use residential and commercial development that is designed to take advantage of public transportation access. TOD is an important component of smart growth because it allows people to live, work and play without having to rely on a car. TOD also allows the state to grow in a way that takes advantage of existing infrastructure and does not consume our limited open space.
Elements of good transit oriented development include pedestrian-friendly design, a mix of compatible uses, connectivity to the surrounding community and a mix of housing options. New Jersey Future supports the expansion of TOD near New Jersey’s transit stations, and encourages municipalities to enact zoning that allows such development to occur.

The Central Jersey Housing Resource Center honored New Jersey Future with its Outstanding Achievement in Affordable Housing Award.

A new bill streamlines New Jersey’s portfolio of economic incentives, but unless it is amended it will go too far toward subsidizing sprawl development.

A new Rutgers report highlights the coming problem of aging and abandoned suburban office parks. Those facilities that cannot be repurposed to meet the market demand for mixed-use, transit-accessible employment centers should not be the recipients of state job-creation incentives.

The Federal Transit Administration’s awarding of a $400,000 grant to examine the possibility of building a new light-rail station in Jersey City demonstrates tangible commitment to advancing economic development through transit-oriented development.

A new newsletter from the Land Use Law Center at PACE University, focused on transit-oriented development issues.

New Jersey has 243 transit facilities, ranging from small single-track stations to major multi-line hubs. The unique characteristics of each station, of its immediate neighborhood, and of its surrounding municipality mean that a wide variety of development strategies should be brought to bear in order to maximize each location’s potential. This report shows how data assembled by New Jersey Future can be used to make decisions on how to target various kinds of transit-oriented development efforts. September 2012.

Two plans, an innovative zoning code, a feasibility study and three projects are winners of New Jersey Future’s 2012 Smart Growth Awards. Joseph M. Taylor receives the Cary Edwards Leadership Award.
Sept. 24, 2012: New Jersey Future announced it has assembled a comprehensive database of development-related statistics for the state’s 243 transit stations and their surrounding neighborhoods.
Jan. 13, 2013 — Two of the most successful and popular economic incentive programs – the Urban Transit Hub Tax Credit and the Economic Redevelopment and Growth program – are proposed to change. One of the strongest themes that run through these two programs is that they have powerful smart-growth location-based criteria that provide incentives for businesses to grow in places with the appropriate infrastructure and not in places with important environmental features or that will be more costly for the state.

Four innovative projects and three visionary plans comprise the list of winners of New Jersey Future’s 2013 Smart Growth Awards. Diane Sterner will receive the Cary Edwards Leadership Award.
See all Future Facts and Articles in this category »
Reports, Presentations and Testimony
- 04/02/2012: NJFuture Comments to State Planning Commission on Draft State Strategic Plan
- 05-2009 Smart Housing Incentives Act - Summary
- Targeting Transit -- New Jersey Future
- 03/30/2011: Testimony: Preserve Transit Villages in Transportation Capital Plan
- A Citizen's Guide to Transit-Oriented Development
- 05/07/2009 Testimony on Urban Transit Hub Tax Credit Act
- Transit-Oriented Development Workshop for HCDNNJ memb mtg 06-15-2011
- NJ Transit RFQ for Parking Concession 10-10




