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For over 10 years and counting, 83-year-old Ken Roth has greeted those who descend from the southbound NJ Transit train at Asbury Park’s Transportation Center.

A lifetime member of the Asbury Park Chamber of Commerce, Roth said greeting visitors from 11 am to 2 pm Saturday and Sunday from Memorial Day weekend through Labor began by chance. What started as part of a program EZ Ride used to administer in town, continued long after grant funding ended.

“I meet four southbound trains,” Roth said. “Last year NJ Transit had seven trains in the same time period.”

Aside from offering direction [in mid photo above Roth looks up train times for father son travelers via NJ Transit DepartureVision App], advising on transportation options and the highlights of what the city has to offer, Roth keeps a tally of how many people get off the North Jersey Coastline, whether the train arrives on time and remarks, such as weather conditions.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s raining or extremely hot, he is always out there,” Chamber Executive Vice President Sylvia Sylvia-Cioffi said. “He sends me texts with updates, that are complete with emojis.”

This year, Roth began sending his reports to Transportation Manager Michael Manzella and is not only in conversation with him on a regular basis but with Complete Streets founding member Polli Schildge.

“More and more people are taking bikes south,” he said.

Case in point were members of the Lanza family and a few friends [shown below midset]. The Asbury Park residents left on the 10:58 am train bound for Point Pleasant Beach where they were going to participate in a charity ride.

Roth has been a long time advocate for the trains and for improving the locally-owned transportation center. He shares less known tidbits, like:

“You see that engine,” he said with excitement in his voice. “That’s an ALP DP number four. NJ Transit is the only train line in the country that uses it. It’s a dual powered engine.”  

His work with the Asbury Park Complete Streets Coalition centers around ensuring better train service to reduce exhaust emissions and the automobiles in our streets, he said.

“The average person just takes trains for granted,” he said. “They don’t realize their importance. I think in some ways they are as vital to the economy of Asbury Park as that of people coming by car.”

On average, Roth estimates that summer weekend train travels equate to 500 visitors during his vetting time period.

“It helps the local economy, the emissions, traffic congestion and parking problems,” he said.

Roth also helped rally for faster and more frequent trains, and is a proponent for a year round late night run.

“If you take the train into the city to see a Broadway show, you really have to rush from the theater to the Penn Station to make the last train,” he said, noting that the last train with a connection to Asbury Park leaves New York Penn Station at 11:18 p.m.

Roth and his wife Iva are avid travelers due to set out on a world wide cruise in January. The couple met while working at the once boardwalk located Kohr’s Ice Cream shop over 60 years ago. The York, Pennsylvania, natives lived in town shortly after they were married but returned to York where Iva taught school and he ran a yearbook company that employed 20 people. The have lived [part time] in Asbury Park for over 50 years.

So, it is no wonder that their love affair with the City includes his wife continual work at Robert Legere Design on Cookman Ave and Roth making volunteer work a full time endeavor. The couple are regular attendees at the bi-monthly City Council meetings and Chamber of Commerce events.

Roth, through is volunteer work with the Chamber, helped bring defining signage to the transportation center and supported the campaign to feature local artist Patricia Arroyo work inside the transportation and the artwork inside the tunnel.

“The tunnel used to be so dreary,” he said. “Now the art really catches people’s eye. I’ve been working with Jenn [Hampton] from Parlor Gallery to bring more art to the transportation center but, it’s a matter of getting the funding.”

In fact, the tunnel is a big part of Roth’s pitch to visitors. Those who venture to walk the long way ‘round are directed to take the tunnel.

“It saves 10 minutes if you use the tunnel and walk down Cookman Avenue to the beach,” he said. “It also gives visitors a chance to see what the downtown has to offer.”

In between waiting to greet train passengers, Roth has his favorite spots; one being Starbucks in Ocean Township and the other High Voltage, located directly across from the transportation center on Springwood Avenue.

On Saturday, September 1, Roth’s counts for the four trains were 75, 90, 60 and 40.

“We are running even this year, compared to last year,” he said. “We’ve had good crowds this year. There are times when I’ve seen over a hundred people on the platform at the end of a weekend.”

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