Lauren Rivera 
The hustle and bustle of public transit doesn’t leave much room for whimsy. But maybe it should, starting with a pair of googly eyes slapped onto the front of the locomotives. In an effort to add some flair to the daily commute, a team of local New Jerseyans behind the group — Googly Eyes NJ — have created a petition to put googly eyes on the NJ Transit trains. Read on for what to know about this effort to make the morning grind a little more lively here in the Garden State.
The Details
Googly Eyes NJ is a local group of train enthusiasts with one goal in mind: to put pairs of googly eyes on NJ Transit trains. “This vision aims to inject a little bit of joy and fun into the slog of the daily commute,” Googly Eyes NJ shared with The Hoboken Girl.
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The group has started a petition to put the plan into effect. As of this writing, there are 147 signatures. According to the comment section of the petition, fellow New Jerseyans are in favor of the idea, like Lucas from Long Valley, who wrote, “Would make my train trips much more entertaining. Plus, we could all use a laugh, and giant train eyes are hilarious,” and Yogesh from South Plainfield, who said, “Let’s make this happen!!”
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The inspiration to install eyes on trains draws from other successful campaigns like the one in Boston. According to the Associated Press, in 2024, a group of train lovers approached Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority General Manager + CEO Phillip Eng with a request to place googly eyes on its subway trains. “The group even dropped off a package of plastic googly eyes at the MBTA’s headquarters in Boston,” the article reads. “When I saw it, it made me laugh,” Eng told Associated Press. “I thought we could do something like that to have some fun.”
If this were to go into effect, Googly Eyes NJ plans to pay for the entirety of the installment themselves, all to make the daily treks a little more enjoyable. “There’s no deeper message or meaning!” Googly Eyes NJ shared. “We simply want to see googly eyes on the trains.”
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Those looking to join the other 147 locals in signing the petition can visit this link.
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