NJ Transit launched a redesigned website and an AI-powered chatbot named Navvie on September 3, 2026, marking the start of a broader overhaul of its customer communications systems. The digital upgrades, directed by New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, aim to modernize how the agency delivers trip planning, service alerts, and real-time information across multiple channels as it simultaneously replaces its oldest rail cars through a $3 billion fleet modernization program.
Website redesign and Navvie chatbot debut
The new website features simplified navigation, a mobile-responsive layout, and more prominently displayed service alerts and schedules for rail, bus, and light-rail. Accessibility improvements include increased text clarity, better screen reader navigation, and compliance with updated web content accessibility guidance.
Navvie, the agency's first digital assistant, provides trip-planning support, schedule guidance, and transfer information 24/7. NJ Transit President and CEO Kris Kolluri said, "Our redesigned website puts customers first while Navvie, our first digital assistant, gives customers a smarter, more convenient way to plan their trips and get travel information." The agency said Navvie may be integrated into the NJ Transit mobile app by late 2026, depending on pilot results.
Mobile app updates and rider-driven improvements
An enhanced mobile app launches September 9, with improvements to service alert access, trip planning, nearby-station functionality, and event ticketing - including support for special-event travel. A second release later in September will add a home screen favorites module and a breaking news module that mirrors the website's messaging, allowing riders to navigate multiple major service announcements directly from the home screen.
These updates respond to passenger feedback collected after the agency released its newly designed mobile app earlier this year. The agency also cited accessibility, payment, performance, and general usability fixes in the release. For professionals managing customer-facing communications, this approach - releasing, gathering feedback, then iterating - mirrors best practices in AI for Customer Support rollouts where user input shapes subsequent versions.
RFI for a unified communications platform
On June 10, NJ Transit issued a request for information (RFI) seeking input from companies that provide real-time transit communications systems. The RFI closed on September 17, 2026, and the agency expects to award a contract in 2027 for a unified customer communications platform. The goal is a single authoritative source that pushes accurate, consistent information simultaneously across the mobile app, website, email and text alerts, digital station signage, and social media.
Currently, NJ Transit disseminates passenger communications through at least 10 separate systems, including DepartureVision, MyBus, SMS, push notifications, public address systems, and third-party data feeds. The new platform would consolidate these channels and support real-time operational messaging, multilingual communications, and future expansion. Kolluri said, "I am encouraged by the robust response to our request for information. There are many technology solutions available to make it possible for us to deliver consistently accurate, unified real-time information to customers across every channel."
Why this matters for PR and communications professionals
NJ Transit's initiative is a case study in multi-channel crisis and service communications at scale. The agency is moving from fragmented messaging systems - where a delay might show on digital signage but not on the app - toward a single platform that synchronizes information instantly across every customer touchpoint. For PR teams, the takeaway is structural: inconsistent channel messaging undercuts trust faster than any single communication error. The RFI process also shows how public-sector organizations can use market research to define scope before procurement, a method that corporate communications teams can adapt when vetting vendors for their own unified messaging or AI for PR & Communications tools. The phased rollout - website, chatbot, app updates, then full platform - also offers a template for introducing AI-assisted communications without overwhelming internal teams or external audiences.
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