May 19, 2022
Courtesy/GWTIDA
The Wildwoods Island Shuttle Service will start Thursday, May 26 with weekend-only service through Sunday, June 19. Routes will run from 5 p.m. to midnight, transitioning to daily service from June 20 through Labor Day. A ride will cost $3.
A new jitney service will run through Wildwood, Wildwood Crest and North Wildwood this summer in an effort to increase accessibility to the boardwalk, amusement piers and entertainment district.
The Wildwoods Island Shuttle Service will debut Thursday, May 26 with weekend-only service continuing through Sunday, June 19. Daily service will begin June 20 and run through Labor Day. Weekend-only service will return from Sept. 9 through Oct. 22.
Each of the shuttles will be marked with a Wildwoods logo and will be provided by the Jitney Association transportation service company. The vehicles each have 13 seats and are equipped with wheelchair lifts.
The shuttles will run the length of the island on a route that begins at Diamond Beach in the south and continues along Atlantic Avenue up to Ocean Avenue in Wildwood Crest. From there, the shuttle will take passengers up to Schellinger Avenue and the Boardwalk. They'll then continue north on Atlantic Avenue before making a final stop at Morey's Piers on 26th Street and the Boardwalk.
The shuttles will run from 5 p.m. through midnight, with on-demand stops made throughout their routes.
A planned late-night route for the North Wildwoods entertainment district eventually will bring shuttle service down Atlantic Avenue to Third and Old New Jersey avenues.
The cost to ride will be $3 one way and $4 for the late night service.
"The Wildwoods Island Shuttle will provide a convenient way for visitors to ride from their hotels, motels and vacation rentals to the Boardwalk and all three amusement piers without having to move their cars and find parking to experience what the Wildwoods have to offer," the mayors of the three towns said in a joint statement.
A free app, Jitney Surfer, can be downloaded from Google Play and the Apple App store to view a map of shuttle routes and get real-time locations of each shuttle.
"The Wildwoods Island Shuttle offers visitors and residents in the Wildwoods an ideal opportunity to travel between the three municipalities with ease, and to experience travel throughout the resort destination in a new, convenient and affordable way," said Manny Mathioudakis, president of the Jitney Association.
In April, Ocean City unveiled plans for a similar jitney service with routes along the Boardwalk and the downtown shopping district.
The goals of the new shuttle services include easing the strain of public parking during the busy summer season and encouraging more car-free vacationing at the Jersey Shore.
