AirTrain Newark is a monorail people mover system connecting the terminals at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) and the Newark Liberty International Airport Station on the Northeast Corridor (NEC), where transfers are made to Amtrak and NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line and North Jersey Coast Line. The monorail opened in 1996, and is planned to be replaced by a Cable Liner system by 2030.
History
Planning and initial operations
thumb|View from the front car of a train in 1997|left
In 1991, ground was broken for AirTrain Newark's construction. A monorail had been proposed in order to alleviate vehicular traffic at the terminals. Originally projected to open in 1994, the completion date was pushed back due to a change in project management and issues related to the system's switches. It initially served only as an airport circulator, a service which allows passengers to transfer between airport terminals or concourses. Service was phased in, with trains operating from 5 am to 11 pm for the first 60 days of the monorail's operations, after which time it would operate at all times, starting early that August.
When the system first opened in 1996, a fleet of 12 six-car trains ran on the network. The fleet was later expanded to 18 six-car trains.
In September 2000, the monorail temporarily shut down after defects were detected in the system's de-icing mechanisms. Originally anticipated to last for three months, the shutdown & repairs lasted for six months, and the monorail resumed operations on the morning of March 10, 2001. Repairs were completed early, and the system resumed operations on July 3.
Replacement
The system has a projected lifespan of 25 years.
However, in January 2019, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced a plan for a $2 billion replacement project for the AirTrain. Murphy has stated that replacement is necessary because the system is reaching the end of its projected 25-year life and is subject to persistent delays and breakdowns. The Port Authority would be responsible for funding the project. In October 2019, the Port Authority's Board of Commissioners approved the AirTrain Newark Replacement Project, with an estimated cost of $2.05 billion. Construction was expected to start in 2021 and be completed in 2024. A draft environmental impact statement was completed in February 2021 when the proposed opening date was shifted to 2026. Federal environmental approval for the project was received later that year.
In December 2023, the Port Authority announced that Doppelmayr will manufacture the replacement system, awarding them the contract in the first phase of the project's contract procurement process. The new system will use automated, cable-driven trains, and many portions of the route will travel along new alignments; the new system will be in in length and have four stations. Tutor Perini received a $1.2 billion contract in November 2024 to construct the new system's stations and elevated tracks, at which point the system's cost had increased to $3.5 billion and the opening date shifted further to 2030. Work on the AirTrain Newark replacement commenced October 7, 2025. Because it wished to prioritize the AirTrain replacement, the PANYNJ deferred an extension of the PATH's Newark–World Trade Center line to Newark Airport by ten years.
Starting January 15, 2026, the AirTrain is suspended on weekdays between 5:00 AM until 3:00 PM to allow construction on the replacement project, with a brief temporary reopening of service on May 22. Additional suspensions are also planned from September 30 until October 30 of the same year, and for October 30, 2026 lasting until January 15, 2027. Throughout each of the shutdowns, AirTrain service will be replaced by temporary free shuttle buses, where it will feature a temporary additional stop at the rental car facility outside of Terminal A. On January 15, 2026, AirTrain service was truncated back to P4, its former terminus, where riders are currently required to use replacement shuttle buses for service to and from the RailLink station.
Fare
The AirTrain is fare-free, except for passengers traveling to and from the RailLink station to connect with NJ Transit or Amtrak; passengers are required to pay an $8.50 "AirTrain access fee" at that station. When passengers purchase a rail ticket to or from the station, the fee is automatically added to the ticket price and a barcode is printed on the ticket that is used to pass through the fare gate array between the AirTrain platform and the train platform. Passengers using passes to another station and those who pay a cash fare on board the train must purchase a separate AirTrain ticket from machines located on either side of the fare gates. Child tickets (ages 5 to 11) are exempt from this additional fare.
The access fee has been raised several times since the system was built, with the last increase to $8.75 going into effect on March 4, 2026.
Stations
<!-- This section is linked from List of rapid transit systems -->thumb|[[Newark Liberty International Airport Station (RailLink station, Amtrak/NJ Transit trains)]]
thumb|Terminal C station
thumb|Terminal A (formerly P2; reopened January 2023)The AirTrain has three major stations within the airport: one for each terminal (A, B, and C). Two stations – Terminal B and Terminal C – sit on top of their respective terminal buildings. There are two other stations (P3 and P4) for the parking lots and rental car facilities, plus a sixth (the RailLink station) at the Northeast Corridor. The system previously included two other stations: P1 and P2 – but the P1 station was removed in July 2019 to permit construction of a new consolidated rental car and parking facility, and P2 closed in June 2021 in connection with the same project.
In 2007, the average daily paid ridership was 4,930.
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! scope="col" |Station
Upon the completion of the replacement AirTrain Newark system in 2030,