24 Hour Emergency Towing NJ | Tow Truck Near Linden

Emergency tow

What emergency towing means when you call The NJ Towing Service at any hour

Emergency towing is a truck dispatched immediately, not scheduled, to a vehicle that cannot safely be driven, with a flat price quoted on the call and a real arrival window based on where the nearest truck is.

The word "emergency" gets used loosely on towing websites. Here it means one specific thing: the truck leaves the yard the minute you approve the quote, the dispatcher gives you an arrival window built from where the nearest available truck actually is, and the driver calls you when he is a few minutes out. It does not mean a surcharge. Night, weekend and holiday emergency tows are priced on the same flat hook-plus-mileage structure as a weekday afternoon.

It also does not mean a call center. The person who answers (908) 444-0129 is the person who sends the truck. There is no hold music, no membership number to read out and no contractor being paged in the background. That is the difference between a towing company and a towing phone number, and it is why drivers in Linden, Elizabeth, Rahway, Union, Newark, Woodbridge and Jersey City call us first when a car dies.

The breakdowns that count as an emergency tow

A car that will not start and is not going to. An engine that overheated and steamed. A transmission that will not engage. A blowout with no spare or a spare that is flat too. A car that hit something and is leaking or pulling. A vehicle sitting in a tow-away zone with the clock running. Any of these on a highway shoulder, a live lane, a driveway, a lot or a parking deck is an emergency tow, and the response is the same for all of them.

What an emergency tow is not, and what to call instead

A dead battery that just needs a jump, a flat with a good spare, keys locked in the car and an empty tank are roadside assistance calls: a technician comes and fixes the thing, usually for less than a tow. A car that runs but should not be driven is a local tow that can be scheduled. A vehicle off the pavement but undamaged is a winch out. Tell the dispatcher what happened and the right one is sent; you never have to choose the category yourself.

Why the truck starts in Linden and why that matters at 2 a.m.

Linden sits at Exit 13 of the Turnpike, on Routes 1 & 9 and Route 27, one exit from the Garden State Parkway at Clark and minutes from I-78 and Route 22. Those are the roads people break down on. A truck that starts there is already pointed the right way toward Elizabeth, Newark, Carteret, Woodbridge, Union, Cranford and Rahway, and it reaches Jersey City, Edison, Montclair, Somerville and Hackensack inside the 45-minute promise.

Flat price, quoted first, every time

Hook fee plus mileage to the destination you choose. The dispatcher adds them on the call and you approve the total before the truck rolls. The receipt matches the quote. There is no fuel surcharge, no after-hours surcharge, no fee for a passenger in the cab, and no storage because the car goes where you said, not to our yard. Read how the number is built on the towing cost section of the homepage.

Car dead right now? Skip the reading. Dispatch answers 24/7 and quotes the price before the truck rolls.

Call (908) 444-0129 Roadside instead of a tow?

How it works

From your emergency call to the hook: the five steps, what to say and what to expect

You tell the dispatcher where you are, what happened, what you drive and where the car should go; the dispatcher quotes a flat price and an arrival window; you approve; the truck rolls; the driver calls when he is minutes out.

Step one: your exact location on the highway or the street

On a highway, say the road, the direction and the nearest exit or mile marker. "I-78 westbound, just past Exit 52" is perfect. "Route 22 eastbound before the Springfield jughandle" is perfect. If the road is the Turnpike or the Parkway, say that first, because those two work differently: Turnpike and Parkway shoulders are served by the Authority's authorized garages. Book with us and we take the car from the exit or the garage's lot. On a street, the address or the two cross streets. In a lot, the name of the store. In a parking deck, the name, the level and the posted clearance if you can see it. The blue dot on your phone's map is your friend; read the road name it shows. The more exact the spot, the closer the truck we pick.

Step two: what happened and whether the car rolls and steers

Will not start, overheated, transmission gone, flat with no spare, hit something. Then: does it roll? Does the steering turn? Is a wheel bent under? A car that rolls and steers loads in two minutes; one that does not is winched, sometimes with a dolly under a corner. Knowing in advance means the driver arrives with the rigging out and the boards ready instead of walking back to the truck for them.

Step three: the vehicle, because it decides the truck

Year, make and model, and whether it is all-wheel-drive, electric, lowered or commercial. AWD, EVs and low cars need a flatbed. A front-wheel-drive commuter car that just quit can ride a wheel-lift for less. Box trucks and vans need a medium-duty truck. Sending the right truck the first time is the difference between one bill and two, and the dispatcher will tell you which one you are getting and why.

Step four: the destination and the price

Your mechanic, a dealer, a body shop, your driveway, or "not sure yet". The destination sets the mileage. The dispatcher quotes the total and you say yes or no. Asking costs nothing and obligates you to nothing. If you want the car towed home tonight and to the shop tomorrow, say so; two short tows are sometimes cheaper than one long wait.

Step five: the truck rolls, the driver calls, the car is loaded and delivered

You get an arrival window. The driver calls when he is a few minutes out so you know which truck is yours. On a shoulder he stops behind you with the amber bar running to shield the scene before he steps out. The car is loaded, one passenger can usually ride in the cab, and at the destination you get an itemized receipt with pickup, drop-off, mileage and the service performed. Card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or cash.

Four questions, one price, truck on the way. Have the road, the exit and the make and model ready.

Call dispatch now What to have ready

Highway towing

Emergency tow truck response on Routes 1 & 9, Route 22, I-78 and I-287, and the exit handoff from the Turnpike and the Parkway

From Linden we reach Routes 1 & 9 from Newark to Edison, Route 22 from Hillside to Bridgewater, I-78 from Newark to the Watchung hills and I-287 to Morristown inside 45 minutes, and we meet cars coming off the Turnpike between Exits 9 and 16 and the Parkway between Exits 105 and 159 at the exit or the authorized garage's lot.

Every road below is one our trucks run daily. The notes are what our drivers actually know about each one: where the shoulders are narrow, which express lanes have no exit, where State Police respond first and how the truck will approach you. Two of them, the Turnpike and the Parkway, work differently from the rest, and the notes say exactly how.

New Jersey Turnpike, Exits 9 to 16: how the emergency towing handoff works

Exit 13 is ours. North through Elizabeth, Newark Airport and the Hudson extension to Bayonne and Jersey City; south through Carteret, Woodbridge and Edison to New Brunswick. The shoulder itself, including the express lanes between Exits 11 and 14 with no way off, is served by the Turnpike Authority's authorized garages, not by us. Book with us anyway: the dispatcher tells you how to reach the Authority's roadside help, and the moment their truck has the car at the nearest exit or in the garage's lot, our flatbed takes it to the shop, the dealer or the driveway you choose at the same flat quoted price. Tell us the exit and the direction so our truck is waiting on the right side of the road.

Garden State Parkway, Exits 105 to 159: the exit-to-shop leg is ours

One exit from the yard at Clark and Cranford. North to Union, Irvington, the Oranges, Bloomfield, Clifton and Passaic; south to Woodbridge, Sayreville, Old Bridge and the Bayshore. Long stretches without an exit and only two service areas between the Union toll plaza and Raritan. The shoulder and the ramps on the highway belong to the Authority's authorized garages; book with us and we take the car from the exit or the garage's lot to wherever it is going, at the same flat price. The local streets at the foot of the Cranford and Clark ramps ice first every winter and produce winch-outs before the plows are out.

Broke down on the Turnpike or the Parkway? Book with us, and we take it from the exit

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority allows only its authorized garages to tow or work on the shoulder of the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, and we are not one of them yet. Call us anyway. The dispatcher tells you how to reach the Authority's roadside help, and you book the rest of the job with us: the moment the authorized truck has the car off the highway, at the nearest exit or in the garage's lot, our truck takes over and moves it to the shop, the dealer or the driveway you choose, at our normal flat quoted price.

Coming soon: a booking assist that connects you to the right authorized garage for your stretch of the Turnpike or Parkway through us, so the highway leg and our leg are arranged in one call. Every other road we serve, including Routes 1 & 9, Route 22, I-78, I-287, I-280, Route 3, Route 46 and every local street, is a direct dispatch from Linden.

Routes 1 & 9 emergency towing from Newark to Woodbridge

The road our trucks live on. Through Linden, Elizabeth and Newark to the north; Avenel, Woodbridge and the Route 9 split into Perth Amboy and Sayreville to the south. Narrow shoulders, constant rear-end collisions at the lights, potholes every spring. Give the nearest cross street or business and the driver knows exactly where to stop.

Route 22 emergency towing from Hillside to Bridgewater

Union, Springfield, Mountainside, Scotch Plains, Watchung, North Plainfield, Green Brook, Bridgewater. Hills that overheat engines, jughandles that confuse GPS, and a dealer and repair-shop corridor where many local tows end. Say eastbound or westbound and the nearest store or intersection.

I-78 emergency towing from Newark to the Watchung hills

Newark and Hillside to Union, Springfield, Summit, Berkeley Heights and Watchung, on toward I-287. The express and local split near Union and the long climb through the reservation kill alternators and overheat radiators. We run both directions from the Linden end.

I-287, I-280, Route 27, Route 35 and the local corridors

I-287 to Piscataway, Bridgewater, Somerville, Basking Ridge and Morristown. I-280 to the Oranges and Livingston. Route 27 from Elizabeth through Rahway to Metuchen and New Brunswick; Route 35 from Woodbridge through Perth Amboy to Hazlet and Middletown. St. Georges Avenue, Wood Avenue, Elizabeth Avenue and Springfield Avenue are where the driveway and lot calls happen.

On a shoulder right now? Belted in, hazards on. Call and say the road, the direction and the exit.

Call from the shoulder Every town we cover

Tow trucks

Flatbed or wheel-lift for an emergency tow: how the dispatcher picks the truck so you pay once

AWD, 4x4, electric, hybrid, lowered, luxury and non-rolling vehicles get a flatbed; a front- or rear-wheel-drive car that rolls and steers can ride a wheel-lift for slightly less; the dispatcher decides from the make and model you give on the call.

The second decision after your location is the truck, and getting it wrong costs you either a flatbed you did not need or a transfer case a wheel-lift dragged dry. We make it on the phone from the make and model, and we tell you what we chose and why.

When the emergency tow must be a flatbed

Every all-wheel-drive and four-wheel-drive vehicle. Every electric vehicle. Hybrids with electric rear axles. Lowered cars and long-overhang sports cars. Anything with crash damage that will not roll straight. Anything with a seized engine or locked steering. These ride with all four wheels on the deck, strapped at the tires, and the flatbed towing page explains each case.

When a wheel-lift is fine and slightly cheaper

A front-wheel-drive sedan that will not start, overheated, or has a flat with no spare, going a few miles to a shop. The front wheels are cradled and the rear wheels roll. Faster to load in a tight spot, and the truck is smaller for narrow streets in Elizabeth, Bayonne or Hoboken.

Cars that will not roll, and cars in low garages

A car that will not roll is winched up the flatbed deck, sometimes with a dolly under one corner or skates to move it out of a nose-in spot. A parking deck under seven feet keeps the flatbed out; we dolly the car to the entrance and load outside. Tell the dispatcher the garage name and level and it is planned before the truck leaves.

Medium and heavy-duty emergencies

Box trucks, sprinter vans, landscaping rigs, buses and tractors are dispatched as heavy duty towing with the truck rated for the weight. Tell us the GVWR and whether it is loaded. Fleet accounts get a direct line.

Tell us the make and model. The dispatcher picks the truck and quotes it. No second truck, no second bill.

Call (908) 444-0129 Flatbed towing

Towing cost

How much an emergency tow costs in New Jersey and why we quote it before the truck moves

An emergency tow costs a flat hook fee plus a per-mile rate to your destination, quoted on the call, with no night, weekend, holiday or fuel surcharge; roadside services each have one flat price.

Hook fee plus mileage, nothing else

The hook fee covers dispatch, loading and the driver's time on scene. Mileage is the distance from pickup to drop-off at a per-mile rate. Inside Union County and the near side of Middlesex and Essex most tows fall within the base mileage. The dispatcher adds the two and gives you one total.

What is never on an emergency towing bill

No fuel surcharge. No after-hours or holiday surcharge. No passenger fee. No "administrative" fee. No storage, because the car goes where you told us. If a driver ever asks for a different number than dispatch quoted for the same job, call dispatch from the scene.

Paying, and getting reimbursed

All major cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and cash on site; net terms for fleet accounts. The itemized receipt has the pickup, destination, mileage and service, which is what insurers and roadside plans need. Collision coverage almost always reimburses an accident tow; most roadside memberships reimburse an out-of-network emergency tow up to their limit.

Why there is no price list on the website

A number on a page cannot know whether you are in Linden or Morristown, driving a Civic or a Range Rover, or going three miles or thirty. A quote on the phone takes thirty seconds and is exact. Call, ask, and hang up if you do not like it.

Get the exact price for your emergency tow in thirty seconds. Asking is free.

Call for a quote Schedule a tow instead

Roadside emergency

Emergency towing situations we handle every night across Union, Middlesex, Essex and Hudson County

The common emergency tows are highway breakdowns, cars that will not start in driveways and lots, overheats and blown transmissions, blowouts with no spare, post-accident tows after police clearance, and vehicles that must move before a tow-away or street-sweeping window.

Highway shoulder breakdowns at night

The most dangerous call. Stay in the car, belted, hazards on, unless the car itself is in danger; then get behind the guardrail well away from it. Our driver positions the truck to shield the scene before he steps out. Do not accept a tow from a truck that shows up uninvited; ours says the company name and your name.

Driveways, station lots and store parking at dawn

The car that will not start before the school run in Westfield. The car that sat all day at the Rahway or Metuchen station with a dome light on. The car in the Woodbridge Center lot after closing. Often a jump start fixes it; when it does not, the flatbed is dispatched from the same call.

Overheats, blown transmissions and dead alternators

Route 22's hills and the I-78 climb produce these. A temperature gauge in the red or a transmission that will not engage is a stop-now, tow-now situation. Limping to the shop turns a repair into a rebuild. The tow is a fraction of the difference.

Blowouts with no spare

A third of flat-tire calls end as a tow because there is no usable spare. A flat tire change is the first try; if there is nothing to put on, the tow to the tire shop you choose is quoted on the same call.

After an accident, once the scene is clear

Calling your own tow before the police rotation truck arrives keeps you in control of where the car goes and what it costs. The accident towing page walks through it step by step.

Tow-away zones, street sweeping and impound deadlines

A car that cannot move itself and has to be gone before 8 a.m. is an emergency in its own way. We move it to your driveway or the shop before the ticket, and for cars already at a rotation yard we can pick up on a signed release and stop the storage clock the same day.

Whatever stopped the car, one number sends the right truck.

Call (908) 444-0129 Accident towing

While you wait

What to do while you wait for an emergency tow truck on a New Jersey road

Pull fully onto the shoulder with the wheels turned away from traffic, hazards on, stay belted in the car unless it is unsafe, keep your phone charged for the driver's call, and have your license, registration and belongings ready.

Positioning the car and yourself

If it still rolls, get it fully onto the shoulder or off at the next exit. Turn the wheels away from traffic so a rear-end hit pushes the car off the road rather than into it. Stay in the car, belted. If the car is in danger, get behind the guardrail, never in front of or behind the vehicle.

What to tell the dispatcher about the traffic

A narrow shoulder, a blind curve, a bridge with no shoulder, a merge. It changes the approach and where the truck stops. If police are already there, say so; we coordinate on the lane.

Phone, keys and paperwork

Keep the phone charged; the driver calls when he is minutes out. Have the key ready, and take wallet, phone charger, medication, the garage opener and anything in the trunk you need tonight. The driver does not open your glovebox for you.

At the destination

If the shop is closed we can leave the car in its lot with the key in the drop box, or hold it and deliver first thing in the morning rather than leaving it on a street to be ticketed. Say which you prefer when you book.

Belted in, hazards on, phone charged. Now call. The driver will call you back before he arrives.

Call from the shoulder Contact page

Service area

Emergency towing coverage by county: every town within 45 minutes of Linden

Emergency towing is dispatched from Linden to 163 towns in Union, Middlesex, Essex, Hudson, Somerset, Morris, Monmouth, Bergen and Passaic counties, with Union County and the neighboring parts of Middlesex and Essex in the fastest zone.

Zone 1: Linden, Elizabeth, Rahway, Union, Cranford, Newark, Carteret, Woodbridge

Under twenty minutes on a normal day. All of Union County, Carteret and Woodbridge Township in Middlesex, Newark and Irvington in Essex. This is where the trucks are, and it is where most emergency calls come from: the Turnpike exits between 12 and 14, the Parkway exits at Clark and Cranford, Routes 1 & 9, Route 22 and Route 27.

Zone 2: Edison, New Brunswick, the Oranges, Bayonne, Jersey City, Watchung

Twenty to thirty-five minutes. Edison, Metuchen, New Brunswick, Sayreville and Old Bridge; Maplewood, Millburn, the Oranges, Montclair and Livingston; Bayonne, Jersey City, Kearny, Secaucus and Hoboken; Watchung, North Plainfield and Bound Brook; Chatham; Matawan and Hazlet; the Meadowlands towns.

Zone 3: Morristown, Somerville, Freehold, Hackensack, Fort Lee, Paterson

Thirty-five to forty-five minutes, longer at rush hour and in storms, and the dispatcher says so. Morris County, the western Somerset towns, northern Monmouth, the Bergen towns from Hackensack to Fort Lee, and all of southern Passaic. Outside the map, long-distance towing goes anywhere at a per-mile rate.

Inside the map? A truck is one call away. Outside it? Call anyway; scheduled and long-distance tows go anywhere.

Call (908) 444-0129 See the full map

Highway breakdown

The first ten minutes after a breakdown on the Turnpike, the Parkway, Routes 1 & 9, a local arterial or your own street

In the first ten minutes after a breakdown you get the car as far off the travel lane as it will roll, turn on the hazards, stay belted unless the car itself is in danger, read the road and exit off your phone's map, and call dispatch so the truck is moving while you settle in to wait.

Every road in the territory fails you a little differently. A dead car on the Turnpike is a traffic problem before it is a mechanical one. A dead car on a residential street in Cranford is a parking problem. The truck we send is the same; what you should do in the ten minutes before it arrives is not. These are the five road types our drivers see every week, and the first moves that make each one safer and faster.

Breaking down on the New Jersey Turnpike between Exits 9 and 16

Coast to the right shoulder if the car still rolls; in the express lanes between 11 and 14 there is no exit, so the shoulder is the only option and it is narrow. Hazards on, wheels turned right, stay belted. Read the mile marker off the small green post or the road name off your map and call (908) 444-0129: "Turnpike northbound, car lanes, mile 100." Here the rule is different from every other road we run: the Turnpike Authority allows only its authorized garages to tow from the shoulder, and we are not one of them yet. The dispatcher tells you how to reach the Authority's roadside help, whose safety service patrol and the State Police roll this stretch constantly anyway, and books our flatbed to meet the car at the nearest exit or in the authorized garage's lot and take it to the shop or driveway you choose at the same flat quoted price. Tell the patrol where the car is going and that our truck is waiting. The Turnpike towing notes on the homepage and the Elizabeth, Newark and Woodbridge pages cover the exits closest to the yard.

Breaking down on the Garden State Parkway near Clark, Cranford and Union

The Parkway shoulder disappears on the bridges and pinches at the Union toll plaza, so if the engine is dying, aim for the next wide stretch or the next exit rather than stopping on a span. Between Exits 129 and 142 the exits come fast; south of Woodbridge they do not, and a car that quits at 125 has a long walk to anything, which is why you stay in it. Say the direction and the nearest exit number; every Parkway exit is numbered by mile, so "southbound before 135" places you within a mile. The Parkway shoulder itself is served by the Authority's authorized garages, so book the rest with us: our Cranford and Rahway trucks are one ramp from the Parkway, meet the car at the exit or the garage's lot, and reach the 129 to 142 exits faster than anyone dispatched from the city.

Dead on Routes 1 & 9, Route 22 or Route 27 in traffic

The arterials are the most dangerous place to be stopped because drivers behind you are looking at the light, not at your hazards. If the car rolls at all, get it through the intersection and into the nearest lot, gas station apron or side street, even a few car lengths. On Routes 1 & 9 through Linden and Elizabeth the jughandles and the shoulder in front of the strip stores are the usual refuge; on Route 22 the center-lane stores have their own aprons. Name the business you are in front of; the driver knows the corridor by its storefronts. A car in a live lane at a light is the one case where we ask the local police to hold traffic while we load, and the emergency towing in Newark and Elizabeth pages explain how those departments handle it.

Local arterials: St. Georges Avenue, Wood Avenue, Springfield Avenue and Morris Avenue

Two-lane county roads through Linden, Roselle, Rahway, Union and Cranford have no shoulder, only the curb lane and driveways. Pull into the first driveway apron or the nearest side street; a car half in the lane on St. Georges Avenue at 5 p.m. backs up three towns. If it will not roll, stay in it with the hazards on and the wheel turned toward the curb. These are wheel-lift roads: the smaller truck slips into a tight spot in two minutes where a flatbed needs the lane. Tell the dispatcher the cross street and whether you are in the lane or off it, and the right truck is chosen on the call.

Your own street, your driveway or the lot at the train station

No traffic risk, so the first ten minutes are about the clock. A car that will not start before work in Westfield or Cranford is usually a jump start first; say "it clicks" or "it cranks but does not catch" and the dispatcher knows which truck to send. A car that died in the Rahway or Metuchen station lot after the last train needs to be gone before the morning permit holders arrive. A car in a driveway that has to be at the shop when it opens can be picked up at 6 a.m. and waiting in the lot at 7:30. Say the deadline and dispatch works backward from it.

Wherever the car quit, the first call is the same. Say the road, the direction and the exit or cross street, and the truck is moving before you finish the sentence.

Call dispatch now Every highway we cover

Night towing

Emergency towing at night, in a storm and with kids or pets in the car: how the response changes and what dispatch asks you

At night the same trucks run with the same flat price and the driver lights the scene before he steps out; in a storm the arrival window is honest about the roads and the winch comes along; with children or pets in the car the dispatcher plans the ride before the truck leaves the yard.

Night emergency towing versus a weekday afternoon tow

The trucks are the same, the drivers are the same crew, and the hook-plus-mileage price is the same. What changes is the scene. At night the driver stops well behind you with the light bar and work lights on so the car and the shoulder are lit before anyone opens a door, and he calls when he is two minutes out so you know the truck pulling in is ours and not a passing operator hunting a hook. Traffic is lighter but faster, so on I-78 and Routes 1 & 9 we load quickly and do the paperwork at the destination. The upside of a 2 a.m. call is that a truck from Linden reaches Newark, Edison or Jersey City in a fraction of the daytime window.

Storm response: snow, ice, downpours and the July heat

In a snowstorm the calls stack up, and we say so: the dispatcher gives you a real window built from the roads, not a hopeful one. Every truck carries the winch and the boards in winter because half the breakdowns on the streets at the foot of the Parkway ramps are really winch-outs. In a downpour on Routes 1 & 9 hydroplaned cars end up on the shoulder or in the median and are loaded from the driest angle. In a heat wave the overheats come off Route 22's hills and the I-78 climb by the dozen, and the trucks start cold with coolant on board for the shop run. Weather never changes the price; it only changes the honesty of the arrival time.

What the dispatcher asks and why every question saves you money

Where are you, exactly. What happened. Does it roll and steer. Year, make, model, and is it AWD, electric or lowered. How many people are with the car. Where is it going. None of that is small talk. The location picks the closest truck. The symptom decides between a roadside technician and a tow. Roll-and-steer decides whether the winch and the dolly come out. The make and model decides flatbed or wheel-lift so nobody pays for a second truck. The headcount plans the ride. The destination sets the mileage and the quote. Thirty seconds of questions is what makes the number exact and the first truck the right truck.

Children, car seats, elderly passengers and the ride to the shop

Tell the dispatcher how many people and how old. One passenger usually rides in the cab; a family of four does not fit, so we plan it: a rideshare or a relative meeting you at the destination, or a tow to your driveway tonight and a local tow to the shop tomorrow so nobody is standing on a shoulder in Woodbridge at midnight. Take the car seats out before loading; the shop will not do it and you will need them in whatever car comes next. On a highway shoulder, children stay belted in the car until the truck is positioned behind you; the driver will tell you when it is safe to move them.

Pets in the car at a breakdown

A dog in the back seat at a Route 22 breakdown is a real passenger. Most drivers will take a leashed dog or a carrier in the cab with you; say so on the call so the truck that comes is one that can. Keep the animal in the car with the windows cracked until the driver arrives; a loose dog on a Parkway shoulder is a second emergency. In summer, tell the dispatcher the engine is dead and the air conditioning with it, and the window moves up. Never leave a pet in a car that is being towed; the deck is not a safe ride.

Where a car can go at 2 a.m. in Union, Middlesex and Essex County

Your driveway is always open, and it is the most common night destination. Most independent shops on Route 22, Route 27 and Routes 1 & 9 have a lot and a key drop and will take a car overnight if you call them in the morning; the driver leaves the car nose-out where it can be seen and photographs it. Dealers' service lanes in Edison, Union and Springfield mostly open at 7 a.m. and want the car in a marked spot. If nothing is open and the street is not an option, say so, and we hold the car and deliver at opening rather than leave it where it will be ticketed by the morning shift.

Midnight, snowstorm, kids in the back. One call, one price, a truck that lights the scene before anyone steps out.

Call (908) 444-0129 Roadside assistance

EV towing

Emergency tows for electric and hybrid cars, work vans and trucks, and what to do when a police or highway authority tow arrives first

Electric and hybrid emergencies always ride a flatbed with the car in tow mode or on skates, commercial vans and work trucks get the truck rated for their weight and a receipt the fleet manager can use, and when a rotation or authority tow reaches you first you tell the officer a private tow is minutes out and where the vehicle is going.

Electric vehicle emergency towing: a dead battery is not a dead car

An EV that stopped on the Parkway with zero range is not a breakdown in the old sense; nothing is broken, it just needs a charger. On the Parkway the Authority's authorized garage brings it off the highway first, and from the exit or the garage's lot it still cannot be dragged an inch on its drive wheels, so it goes on our flatbed, and the destination is a charger or your garage rather than a shop. Put the car in tow or transport mode if the screen still lets you; if the twelve-volt system is dead too, the wheels may be locked and the car comes up the deck on skates. A Tesla, an Ioniq, a Mustang Mach-E and a Rivian each have their own procedure and our drivers know them. Say the model on the call and the truck arrives with the right ramps and the low-angle deck.

Hybrid emergencies and the two batteries that fail differently

A Prius, a RAV4 Hybrid or a Highlander Hybrid that will not power on is usually the small twelve-volt battery, not the traction pack, and a jump start at the terminals under the hood often brings it back. If the dash lights but the car will not go into drive, the hybrid system has faulted and it is a tow. Hybrids with an electric rear axle are effectively AWD and ride the flatbed; a front-drive hybrid that rolls freely can take a wheel-lift for a short hop to the dealer in Edison or Union. Tell the dispatcher the badge on the tailgate and let him sort it.

Commercial vans, work trucks and the contractor's day

A dead Transit full of tools on Routes 1 & 9 at 7 a.m. is a lost day for a crew, so the call is dispatched as fast as a highway emergency. Sprinters, Transits, ProMasters and pickups with ladder racks are usually medium-duty because of the roof height and the load; give the GVWR from the door jamb and say whether it is loaded. Box trucks, landscaping rigs with trailers and shuttle buses are heavy-duty towing with the truck rated for the weight, and the trailer is handled on the same call. Fleet accounts get a direct line, net terms and a receipt addressed to the company, and the Union County and Middlesex County pages list the corridors where most contractor calls come from.

When the Turnpike Authority's patrol or the State Police reach you first

On the Turnpike and the Parkway the safety service patrol or a State Police trooper is often first on scene, and on those two roads they are also the right first call: the Turnpike Authority allows only its authorized garages to tow from the shoulder, and we are not one of them yet. Let the patrol or the trooper bring the Authority's garage, and tell them plainly where the car is going: "A private flatbed from Linden is meeting the car at the exit and taking it to my mechanic." The authorized truck moves the car off the highway, to the nearest safe spot or its own lot, and ours takes over from there on your release the same day, at our normal flat quoted price, before any storage clock adds up. On every other road we run, I-78, Routes 1 & 9 or Route 22, a local officer will usually hold the lane while our truck loads. The accident towing page explains the release paperwork in detail.

Electric, hybrid, a work van or a trooper already behind you: say so on the call and the right truck comes with the right plan.

Call dispatch now Heavy duty towing

Related services

Emergency tow, roadside fix, recovery or scheduled transport: the other services that start with the same call

The same dispatcher sends a flatbed, a wheel-lift, a roadside technician or a heavy-duty truck; you describe what happened and the right service is chosen and quoted.

When the emergency is really a roadside fix

Half the calls that start as "I need a tow" end as a jump start, a tire change, a lockout or a fuel delivery, for less money and with you driving away. Describe the symptom honestly and the dispatcher will tell you which one you need, even if it means a smaller bill.

When the emergency needs recovery first

A car off the pavement is a winch out first and, if it drives afterward, nothing more. A crashed car that will not roll is accident towing with the winch and the boards. A motorcycle down is motorcycle towing with the chock and soft straps.

One number for all of it. Describe what happened and the right truck or tech is sent.

Call (908) 444-0129 All services

Emergency towing facts

Emergency towing in New Jersey at a glance: trucks, coverage, hours, price structure and what to have ready

Emergency towing from The NJ Towing Service is a flatbed or wheel-lift dispatched immediately from Linden, 24 hours a day, to 163 towns in nine counties, at a flat hook-plus-mileage price quoted on the call with no night, weekend, holiday or fuel surcharges.

Service	Emergency towing: a truck dispatched now, not scheduled, to a vehicle that cannot safely be driven, with a flat price quoted on the call and a real arrival window based on where the nearest truck is
Truck used	Flatbed (rollback) for AWD, 4x4, electric, hybrid, lowered, luxury and non-rolling vehicles; wheel-lift for a front- or rear-wheel-drive car that rolls and steers, for slightly less; medium and heavy-duty wreckers for vans and trucks; the dispatcher picks from the make and model
Vehicles handled	Cars, SUVs, pickups, AWD and 4x4, electric and hybrid (flatbed only, in tow mode or on skates), lowered and luxury cars, work vans and trucks, cars in low parking decks (skated to the entrance), cars with kids or pets aboard
What to have ready	The road, direction and exit or mile marker, or the address or cross streets; what happened; make, model and drivetrain; where the car should go; how many people are with the car; your phone charged for the driver's call
Where the car goes	Your mechanic, a dealer, a body shop or your own driveway, never a storage yard we picked; destinations outside the 45-minute area quoted at the per-mile rate; a tow home tonight and a local tow to the shop tomorrow if the shop is closed
Coverage	163 towns in Union, Middlesex, Essex, Hudson, Somerset, Morris, Monmouth, Bergen and Passaic counties, every one within about 45 minutes of Linden dispatch; Routes 1 & 9 from Newark to Edison, Route 22 from Hillside to Bridgewater, I-78 to the Watchung hills and I-287 to Morristown direct from Linden; Turnpike and Parkway shoulders are served by the Authority's authorized garages; book with us and we take the car from the exit or the garage's lot
Response	Usually well under 30 minutes in Union County and the neighboring parts of Middlesex and Essex; 35 to 45 minutes toward the edge of the map, longer at rush hour or in a storm; a real window is quoted on the call
Pricing	Flat hook fee plus loaded mileage to your destination, quoted before the truck moves; the same structure at 3 a.m. on a holiday as at noon on a Tuesday; no night, weekend, holiday or fuel surcharges; no passenger fee; no membership
Payment	Card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or cash on site; itemized receipt by text or email, which most roadside plans and insurers accept for out-of-network reimbursement
Hours	24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every holiday
Phone	Tap to call

Everything about an emergency tow fits in one table. Getting the truck moving takes one call.

Call now Service area

Emergency Towing by town

Emergency Towing in every town we serve: 163 emergency towing pages across 9 New Jersey counties

Emergency Towing is dispatched from Linden to 163 towns; each town below has its own emergency towing page with the roads, the lots, the neighborhoods and the price structure for that town.

Pick your town for the local emergency towing page. Every one is the same phone number, the same flat quoted price and the same 24/7 dispatch; what changes is the drive time from Linden and the roads the truck comes in on.

Emergency Towing in Hudson County: 12 towns

Bayonne and Jersey City via the Turnpike extension; Hoboken and the Gold Coast within the hour any time of day. Bayonne · Jersey City · Kearny · Harrison · East Newark · Secaucus · Hoboken · Union City · Weehawken · West New York · North Bergen · Guttenberg. County page: towing in Hudson County.

Emergency Towing in Somerset County: 16 towns

Route 22 and I-287 towns — Watchung, Bridgewater, Somerville and the Bound Brooks. Watchung · North Plainfield · Green Brook · Warren · Bound Brook · South Bound Brook · Bridgewater · Somerville · Raritan · Manville · Franklin Township · Hillsborough · Basking Ridge · Bernardsville · Bedminster · Branchburg. County page: towing in Somerset County.

Emergency Towing in Morris County: 11 towns

Up Route 24 and I-287 — Chatham, Madison, Morristown and Parsippany. Chatham · Madison · Florham Park · East Hanover · Hanover · Whippany · Morristown · Morris Township · Morris Plains · Parsippany · Montville. County page: towing in Morris County.

Emergency Towing in Monmouth County: 14 towns

The Parkway and Route 9 south — Matawan, Hazlet, Holmdel, Middletown and Freehold. Matawan · Aberdeen · Keyport · Hazlet · Union Beach · Keansburg · Holmdel · Middletown · Marlboro · Manalapan · Freehold · Colts Neck · Red Bank · Atlantic Highlands. County page: towing in Monmouth County.

Emergency Towing in Bergen County: 26 towns

Southern Bergen along Route 17, Route 46 and the Turnpike — the Meadowlands towns through Hackensack and Fort Lee. North Arlington · Lyndhurst · Rutherford · East Rutherford · Carlstadt · Wood-Ridge · Moonachie · Little Ferry · Ridgefield · Ridgefield Park · Palisades Park · Fairview · Cliffside Park · Edgewater · Fort Lee · Hasbrouck Heights · Teterboro · Lodi · Garfield · Saddle Brook · Elmwood Park · Bogota · Hackensack · Teaneck · Englewood · Paramus. County page: towing in Bergen County.

Emergency Towing in Passaic County: 9 towns

Clifton, Passaic and Paterson by way of the Parkway and Route 21. Clifton · Passaic · Paterson · Little Falls · Woodland Park · Totowa · Wayne · Haledon · Prospect Park. County page: towing in Passaic County.

Do not see your town? If it is within 45 minutes of Linden we cover it. Call and ask.

Call (908) 444-0129 Full service area

Emergency towing FAQ

Questions drivers ask before calling for an emergency tow in New Jersey

The answers below cover arrival time, price, insurance, riding along, night and holiday service, AWD and electric vehicles, and what to do while waiting; dispatch answers anything else live.

How much does an emergency tow cost in New Jersey?

An emergency tow costs a flat hook fee plus loaded mileage from where the car is to where you want it, quoted on the call before the truck leaves Linden. The hook depends on the truck the vehicle needs: a wheel-lift for a two-wheel-drive car that rolls is slightly less than the flatbed an AWD, electric or non-rolling car requires, and a heavy wrecker is more again. Mileage depends on the destination you choose. The hour, the day, the weather and the town never move the number; there are no night, weekend, holiday or fuel surcharges, no passenger fee and no membership. Call (908) 444-0129 with the location, the make and model and the destination for the exact price.

How fast can an emergency tow truck get to me?

Inside Union County and the neighboring parts of Middlesex and Essex, most arrivals are well under 30 minutes. At the edge of the 45-minute area — Morristown, Hackensack, Freehold, Paterson — plan on 35 to 45 minutes, longer at rush hour or in a storm. The dispatcher gives you a real window based on where the nearest truck is.

Is there an extra charge for an emergency or night tow?

No. Emergency, night, weekend and holiday tows are quoted on the same flat hook-plus-mileage structure as a weekday afternoon. There is no fuel surcharge either.

Can I ride in the tow truck?

In most cases one passenger can ride in the cab to the destination. Tell the dispatcher how many people are with the car.

Do you need my insurance or AAA information?

No. You pay us directly and we give you an itemized receipt to submit to your insurer or roadside plan. Most plans reimburse an out-of-network emergency tow.

Do you tow AWD and electric vehicles in an emergency?

Yes, on a flatbed only, so no drive wheels are dragged. Tell us the make and model and the right truck comes the first time.

The car is in a low parking garage. Can you get it out?

The flatbed usually cannot fit inside. We bring skates or a dolly, move the car to the entrance and load it outside. Tell the dispatcher the garage name and level.

Where will you take the car?

Anywhere you choose: your mechanic, a dealer, a body shop, your driveway. Never a storage yard we picked. Destinations outside the 45-minute area are quoted at the per-mile rate.

What should I do while I wait on the highway?

Get the car as far right as the shoulder allows with the wheels turned away from traffic and the hazards on. Stay belted in the car unless the car itself is in danger; then get behind the guardrail away from it. Keep your phone charged; the driver calls when he is minutes out.

The police called a rotation tow already. Can you still take it?

If our truck arrives in a reasonable time and the scene is not blocking traffic, most officers in Union, Middlesex and Essex County towns will release the car to a private tow. Tell the officer your tow is on the way.

What if the car just needs a jump or a tire?

Say so, or describe the symptom and let the dispatcher decide. A roadside technician is usually cheaper than a tow and gets you driving. If it turns out to need the truck, the flatbed is dispatched from the same call.

My electric car ran out of charge on the Parkway. Is that an emergency tow?

Yes, and it is a common one. Turnpike and Parkway shoulders are served by the Authority's authorized garages. Book with us and we take the car from the exit or the garage's lot. An EV with zero range cannot be driven or dragged, so from there it rides our flatbed to a charger, your garage or the dealer. Put the car in tow or transport mode if the screen still responds; if the twelve-volt battery is dead as well, the wheels may be locked and the driver brings skates. Tell the dispatcher the model. A Tesla, an Ioniq and a Mach-E each have their own procedure and the truck arrives with the right ramps and the low-angle deck. The price is the same flat hook plus mileage as any other emergency tow, quoted before the truck rolls.

I have two kids and a dog in the car. How does the ride to the shop work?

Say so on the call and the dispatcher plans it before the truck leaves. One passenger usually rides in the cab, and most drivers will take a leashed dog or a carrier with you. A family does not fit, so we arrange the practical version: a relative or rideshare meeting you at the destination, or a tow to your driveway tonight and a local tow to the shop tomorrow so nobody waits on a shoulder. Take the car seats out before the car is loaded; the shop will not do it for you. On a highway, everyone stays belted in the car until the truck is positioned behind you.

A State Police trooper or the Turnpike safety patrol stopped behind me. Will they let me wait for your truck?

On the Turnpike or the Parkway, do not wait for us on the shoulder. Turnpike and Parkway shoulders are served by the Authority's authorized garages. Book with us and we take the car from the exit or the garage's lot. Tell the trooper or patrol driver where the car is going and give them our number; the authorized truck brings it to the nearest safe spot or its own lot, and we pick the car up from there on your signed release the same day so the storage clock stops before it adds up. On any other road, stopped on a shoulder and not blocking traffic, usually yes: tell them a private flatbed is on the way from Linden, give the honest window the dispatcher quoted you, and most troopers and officers will let you wait.

Can you tow me off the New Jersey Turnpike or the Garden State Parkway?

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority allows only its authorized garages to tow or work on the shoulder of the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, and we are not one of them yet. Call us anyway. The dispatcher tells you how to reach the Authority's roadside help, and you book the rest of the job with us: the moment the authorized truck has the car off the highway, at the nearest exit or in the garage's lot, our truck takes over and moves it to the shop, the dealer or the driveway you choose, at our normal flat quoted price.

Question not here? The dispatcher answers it in one sentence and quotes the job in the next.

Call (908) 444-0129 Contact

24 hour emergency towing in New Jersey, dispatched from Linden to every town within 45 minutes