New Jersey Transit Blames WWE For Delays, Long Lasting WM Was “Primary Factor;” WWE Issues Statement

A New Jersey transit spokesperson issues a statement about the delays following WrestleMania.

WWE’s 35th anniversary of WrestleMania lasted until the 12 AM EST hour and some fans began to leave MetLife Stadium during the main event of the show. After the event, many who attended the show that rode public transportation to the venue were having a hard time finding a way back to their destinations and some WrestleMania goers were at MetLife Stadium until 2 AM EST. There were trains running but those were arriving slowly due to the lack of trains running. 

Geez @NJTRANSIT @MetLifeStadium @WrestleMania @WWE you had thousands of people waiting in the rain for 3 hours for trains that were ridiculously delayed. Uber also impossible.

We’re your fans, some traveled far to be here. Please do better next time. @Deadspin @cagesideseats pic.twitter.com/H89wRNv8kp

— sherri nienass littlefield (@nienass) April 8, 2019

The New Jersey transit issued a statement about the delays and placed the blame on WrestleMania lasting until 12:30 AM and the statement also entailed that by federal regulations, the agency was not allowed to have their staff work overtime to command more trains.

“The primary factor contributing to the post-event delays was the WWE’s decision to extend the event to 12:30 a.m., which had significant operational impacts on the evening. NJ Transit was not informed of this decision until late last night,” Jim Smith, a spokesman, said in a statement Monday. “The decision to extend this event resulted in our inability to operate some of those trains due to federal requirements limiting train crew hours,” Smith said. “Last-minute adjustments, such as holding the final trains of the night and adding several additional trips between Secaucus and Penn Station New York by utilizing crews and trains from throughout the system were made.”

New Jersey transit claims to have moved nearly 12,000 people through their rails and there were 80,000 announced people that attended WrestleMania.

WWE issued the following statement to PWInsider, “We regret any inconveniences fans may have experienced with mass transportation after the event.”

To get a refresher of WrestleMania 35, check out Fightful’s post-Mania Fight Size Update.