i'm Raven Santana here at the South Amboy Ferry Terminal where commuters say they were racing for a transit nightmare but were pleasantly surprised to find that it was relatively quiet and say they don't mind the alternative routes at least for now for now it's not bad you know we'll make it work it's annoying but we'll make it work making it work was the phrase of the morning as tens of thousands of commuters sought alternative ways to reach their destinations including taking the New York Waterway Ferry stop here in South Amboy union Beach resident Frank Hagerty said that unlike others he didn't have the option to work from home so he caught an early morning ferry to ensure he got to work on time even though his shift didn't start until later in the afternoon this is my alternative to get here nobody here in Jersey actually added more services there's no more buses that are going in they're keeping like a regular schedule the um great that they upgraded and made bigger um ferry service a bigger a bigger boat but there's no extra ferry service it's the last one in i don't have to be in till 12:00 i'm going in on an 8:45 ferry so that I can get in the city and pay him more money and then beside that New Jersey Transits they're going to get more money which is great they're going to get paid more money but guess who's going to pay for that in another month we are brooke Mai says the ferry will be her go-to while she waits for updates on when trains and buses will resume service when I return I'm anticipating taking the ferry so just trying to adjust plans as needed to support people trying to make their working lives better on the Jersey State Rail service is currently suspended just a short distance away at the South Amboy train station it was a ghost town a clear sign that residents and commuters had gotten word of the strike and stayed home still nearly every commuter I spoke with expressed support for the reasons behind the strike i want everybody to make as much money as they can so it's inconveniencing but it's not their fault in particular i am fully in support of laborers's right to strike and I am fully you know even if it's inconvenient for other people i think it's a really important mechanism that Americans have people all over the world have to improve their working conditions people I spoke with say they remain hopeful that a deal will be reached over the weekend before their Monday commute in the meantime they all agreed that the ferry even at a higher price of 18 bucks a pop for a one-way may become their new mode of transportation for NJ Spotlight News I'm Raven Santana