Northeast Corridor Line

  Northeast Corridor Line
A Northeast Corridor Line train at Metropark.
Overview
Type Commuter rail
System New Jersey Transit Rail Operations
Locale Northern and Central New Jersey
Termini New York Penn Station
Trenton Transit Center
Stations 17
Daily ridership 113,700 (FY 2012)[1]
Operation
Owner Amtrak (tracks)
Operator(s) New Jersey Transit
Rolling stock ALP-46 locomotives
ALP-45DP locomotives
Arrow III
Comet coaches
Multilevel Coaches
Technical
Track length 58.1 mi (93.5 km)
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Route map
Amtrak NEC & LIRR
to Boston & Long Island
Sunnyside Yard
East River Tunnels
East River
 New York – Penn Station
Amtrak Port Authority Trans-Hudson
Hudson River
NY
NJ
North River Tunnels
Secaucus Junction
Portal Bridge
Waterfront Connection
to Hoboken Terminal
Kearny Connection
toward Newark – Broad Street
N.J. Turnpike
PATH
to World Trade Center
Harrison
Dock Bridge
 Newark – Penn Station
Amtrak Port Authority Trans-Hudson
Newark South Street
Route 21
Raritan Valley Line
to High Bridge
Lehigh Line
to Oak Island Yard
I-78 / US 22
Newark Liberty
International Airport
Amtrak
AirTrain Newark
to Newark Airport
 North Elizabeth
Elizabeth
South Elizabeth
Staten Island Railway
 Linden
CSAO Linden Industrial Track
North Rahway
Rahway River Bridge
 Rahway
North Jersey Coast Line
to Bay Head
Colonia
Iselin
G.S. Parkway
 Metropark
Amtrak
CSAO Port Reading Line
Menlo Park
 Metuchen
Perth Amboy Running Track
I-287
 Edison
Raritan River Bridge
Route 18
 New Brunswick
Amtrak
Route 27
M&NB
 Jersey Avenue
County Yard
US 1
Adams
Deans
Monmouth Junction
Jamesburg Branch
Plainsboro
Princeton Branch
to Princeton
Princeton Junction
Amtrak
Princeton
Lawrence
I-295
 Hamilton
 Trenton Transit Center
Amtrak
River Line
to Camden
Route 33
US 206
Route 29
Morrisville–Trenton Railroad Bridge
NJ
PA
SEPTA & Amtrak NEC
to Philadelphia
Morrisville Yard
NS Trenton Cutoff

The Northeast Corridor Line is a commuter rail line operated by New Jersey Transit along Amtrak's Northeast Corridor in the United States. It is the successor to Pennsylvania Railroad trains between Trenton Transit Center and New York Penn Station, and is New Jersey Transit's busiest, and most used commuter rail line as well. After arrival at New York Penn Station, some trains load passengers and return to New Jersey, while others continue east to Sunnyside Yard for storage. Most servicing is done at the Morrisville Yard, at the west end of the line. The Northeast Corridor Line is colored red on New Jersey Transit system maps and its symbol is the State House. The Princeton Branch is a shuttle service connecting to the line.

History

Commuter service on what was to become the Northeast Corridor Line began with the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1933, after the 11,000 volt AC overhead catenary was completed between Trenton and Pennsylvania Station. Penn Station had originally been intended for long distance passenger trains, with steam-hauled commuter traffic routed to the older Jersey City terminal. With the overhead electrification complete, the PRR could run trains of electric multiple units direct to Manhattan.[2]

The weekday schedule in September 1951 had six trains a day from New York to Trenton, seven from New York to New Brunswick, two from Jersey City to Trenton and six from Jersey City to New Brunswick. That includes just the trains that terminated at Trenton or New Brunswick; many more trains from New York to Philadelphia and beyond carried passengers to some suburban stations.

By the 1960s the financial situation of the Pennsylvania Railroad had deteriorated. With the railroad unable to sustain the money losing commuter operation, let alone invest in improved physical plant and rolling stock, the New Jersey Department of Transportation became involved with maintaining the service. In 1968 NJDoT funded construction of the new Metropark station and in 1969 they funded 35 new stainless steel "Jersey Arrow" MU cars.[3] After 1968 the service was taken over by the merged Penn Central railroad and following the Penn Central's bankruptcy the commuter service was taken over by Conrail in 1976, under a contract from NJDoT. The state continued to fund replacement of the aging pre-war MU equipment with the Arrow II and Arrow III orders. Finally in 1983, New Jersey Transit, which already operated nearly all bus service in New Jersey, took over all of Conrail's commuter lines, including the Northeast Corridor Line.

Clockers

An Amtrak Clocker leaving 30th Station in 1976

Clocker trains were started by the Pennsylvania Railroad between Philadelphia and New York; until the 1950s weekday trains departed New York and Philadelphia on the hour through the day, giving rise to the Clocker name. After the Amtrak takeover of the Northeast Corridor the no-longer-hourly "Clocker" service was targeted at commuters making local stops bypassed by the high speed Metroliner and individually named trains. During the 1990s New Jersey Transit contracted with Amtrak to accept monthly NJT passholders on the Clocker trains. Soon the Clockers were primarily used by NJT commuters with only a handful of riders taking the trains to/from Philadelphia; the Clockers were much faster (and more comfortable) than a typical NJT train, but slower and more crowded than a typical Amtrak train causing the former's riders to prefer the trains and the latter's riders to avoid them.

With most Clocker riders using NJT tickets, New Jersey Transit supplied new ALP-46 locomotives to haul the trains' Amfleet coaches; Amtrak soon discontinued the Clocker service altogether and sold the capacity slots to New Jersey Transit for new Trenton express trains. The Clocker last ran on October 28, 2005, and thereafter New Jersey Transit began several extra Trenton-New York express trips. Connecting SEPTA Trenton Line service between Philadelphia and Trenton is listed in the timetable. The Northeast Corridor Line runs from New York Penn Station to Trenton Transit Center along with Amtrak.

Service

The Northeast Corridor Line operates a zone service between the outlying stations and the terminal zone which begins at Newark International Airport Station. During the peak period North Jersey Coast Line trains stop at North Elizabeth through Rahway. Stations between Rahway are served by Jersey Avenue Locals, which originate and terminate at Jersey Avenue station. Finally Trenton Express trains make their first/last stop at Princeton Junction or New Brunswick. A few all stops locals operate sporadically on weekdays as well and all day on weekends. Jersey Ave locals make local stops between Rahway and Elizabeth outside peak periods. North Elizabeth station is skipped by most NEC Line trains and trains cannot stop at Jersey Ave eastbound.[1][4]

Ridership

With high levels of service and a route through one of the most densely populated areas of the United States, the Northeast Corridor Line is New Jersey Transit's busiest rail line. On an average weekday in 2012, the Northeast Corridor Line handled 117,400 boardings.[1] The line also contains all of New Jersey Transit's busiest non-terminal stations: Metropark with 7,447 boardings; Princeton Junction with 6,816; Trenton with 4,638; and New Brunswick with 4,976 weekday boardings.[1]

Rolling stock

All service on the Northeast Corridor Line is electric via overhead lines and uses either Budd/GE Arrow III multiple unit cars during rush hours and one set on the weekends, and push-pull locomotive trains hauled by ALP-46/A or ALP-45DP locomotives all times. These trains are made up of Comet series cars or Bombardier Transportation Multilevels.

Line improvements

The modern era of commuter operations began in 1983 when New Jersey Transit Rail Operations took over the service from Conrail. Since that time, numerous changes to the line intended to improve New Jersey Transit service have been made. These include the following.

Morrisville Yard

The Morrisville Yard is used for train layups. In 2007 NJT opened a new 19-track yard on the site of the former Pennsylvania Railroad freight classification yard across the Delaware River in Morrisville, Pennsylvania. The new yard replaced the haphazard collection of storage tracks around the Trenton Station complex. This not only increased the absolute number of trains that could be stored at the end of the line, but also reduced the number of relay movements needed to position trains in at the correct platform at Trenton. Capacity was also increased by trains no longer having to cross all 4 mainline tracks to access their storage tracks as the new Morrisville yard was accessed by a flying junction.

Trenton Transit Center

Looking southward at the Trenton Transit Center from Track 4

The Trenton Transit Center is the beginning of the New Jersey Transit portion of the Northeast Corridor line as well as the terminus of the SEPTA Trenton Line service. The Trenton station is also a stop for Amtrak trains with most Acela Express, Northeast Regional, Keystone, and long distance trains stopping.

In 2004 the River Line light rail Trenton station opened across the street. In 2008 the station was formally renamed the Trenton Transit Center as the station was overhauled, including the complete replacement of the station headhouse and concourse structure which had last been rebuilt during the 1960s. The new station has more space for vendors and passengers.

Hamilton station

Hamilton Station in Hamilton Township opened in 1999, costing $30 million (1992 USD).[5] With almost direct access to Interstate 295 and Interstate 95, park and ride capacity was large with 1,556 spaces available at the station's opening. Due to the popularity of the station with commuters arriving via Interstate from points south in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, a parking deck was added in 2007 with 2,066 more spaces for a total of 3,622.[6] The station has sculptures and designs from the Grounds for Sculpture, a sculpture park in Hamilton.[7]

Hamilton Station did much to alleviate the increasingly desperate parking situations in Trenton and Princeton Junction. Trenton's downtown station is hard to reach and has little space for parking; Princeton Junction has no direct access to a major highway and its vast parking lot had long since reached capacity. The Hamilton Station was built for New York area commuters traveling increasing distances to work. Its direct freeway access and ample parking proved a hit with riders and it is one of the busiest stations on the New Jersey Transit system. The conversion of the nearby American Standard factory into transit oriented development led to further ridership gains. A new NJ Transit bus garage was also built within the station complex replacing an older garage formerly used by NJ Transit, and Mercer Metro within the City of Tranton.

Metropark station

The Metropark rail station project was initiated by NJDoT in 1968 as part of a plan accommodate businesses and commuters that were fleeing the old urban cores. The station opened in 1971 next to the Garden State Parkway for easy access by automobile; nearby stations at Iselin and Colonia closed soon after. The new station was also designed with the new Metroliner Service in mind with high level platforms and a large business park to make the new station a destination in itself. To allow Metroliners and other express trains to stop at Metropark new crossovers were installed in the 1980s on either side of the station to allow trains on the inner express tracks to pull over and stop at the two side platforms.

Newark Airport station

Newark Liberty International Airport Station was built in conjunction with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the owner of Newark Liberty International Airport. This station allows passengers to connect with AirTrain Newark, the airport's monorail. The station opened in late 2001 and was part of a larger project to increase capacity south of Newark Penn Station. Along with the station's two island platforms, two tracks were added for a mile east and west of the station, bringing the number of tracks on this section of the corridor to 6. This allows some local trains to be passed by NJT express and Amtrak trains.

Kearny and Waterfront Connections

These track connections between the Corridor and the former-DL&W Morris and Essex Lines allow trains from NJ Transit's Hoboken Division to run to New York Penn Station, as well as allowing Newark Division trains access to Hoboken Terminal. No NEC trains serve Hoboken Terminal as of January 2010 (in the 1990s there was one Hoboken-Trenton train a day) but a few North Jersey Coast Line trains run across the connection during weekday peak hours, allowing NEC passengers to transfer. At other times, passengers must transfer using PATH.

Secaucus Junction

Opened in 2003, Secaucus Junction was built as a major transfer hub for the New Jersey Transit system. Built where the Corridor crosses over the Main/Bergen/Port Jervis lines, the station allows passengers on Hoboken-bound trains to switch to trains to New York Penn Station, and vice versa.

Planned improvements

North Brunswick station

A new station along the NEC at North Brunswick was approved by New Jersey Transit Rail Operations in 2013 and planned to open in the future.[8]

Mid-Line Loop

NJT currently originates trains to Newark/New York during peak hours from the Jersey Avenue station in New Brunswick. The agency plans to build a flying junction and balloon loop called the Mid-Line Loop south of a new station south of Jersey Avenue in North Brunswick, allowing trains to turn around, enter and leave the Northeast Corridor without crossing over tracks.[9]

County Yard "train haven"

In January 2014, NJT awarded a $7.64 million design and engineering contract to develop a "train haven" and re-inspection facility where equipment could be stored during serious storms at an expanded and reconfigured County Yard in New Brunswick following Hurricane Sandy, which demonstrated the vulnerability of the agency's current facilities to flooding.[10][11]

Stations

Zone
[12]		 Station[12] Miles (km)
from NYP		 Date
opened		 Date
closed		 Connections / notes[12]
1 New York – Penn Station 0.0 (0.0) 1910 Amtrak: Acela Express, Adirondack, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Keystone Service, Lake Shore Limited, Maple Leaf, Northeast Regional, Pennsylvanian, Palmetto, Silver Meteor, Silver Star, Vermonter
LIRR: Babylon, Belmont Park, City Terminal Zone, Far Rockaway, Hempstead, Long Beach, Montauk, Oyster Bay, Port Jefferson, Port Washington, Ronkonkoma, and West Hempstead Branches
NJ Transit: Gladstone, Montclair-Boonton, Morristown, North Jersey Coast
NYC Subway: "1" train ​"2" train ​"3" train (at 34th Street – Penn Station (Seventh Avenue))
"A" train ​"C" train ​"E" train (at 34th Street – Penn Station (Eighth Avenue))
NYCT Bus: M7, M20, M34 SBS, M34A, Q32
Academy Bus: SIM23, SIM24
Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach: New York Airport Service
Greyhound Lines: BoltBus, NeOn
Megabus: M21, M22, M23, M24, M27
Eastern Shuttle
Vamoose Bus
New York / Hudson county line
Secaucus Junction 3.5 (5.6) 2003 NJ Transit: Bergen, Gladstone, Main, Meadowlands, Montclair-Boonton, Morristown, North Jersey Coast, Pascack Valley, and Raritan Valley Lines
Metro-North: Port Jervis Line
NJT Bus: 2, 78, 129, 329, 353
Hudson / Essex county line
Newark – Penn Station 10.0 (16.1) 1935[13][14] Amtrak: Acela Express, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Keystone Service, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Silver Star, Vermonter
NJ Transit: North Jersey Coast and Raritan Valley Lines
PATH: Newark – World Trade Center
Newark Light Rail: Grove Street – Newark Penn, Broad Street – Newark Penn
NJT Bus: 1, 5, 11, 21, 25, 28, 29, 30, 34, 39, 40, 41, 62, 67, 70, 71, 72, 73, 76, 78, 79, 108, 308, 319, 361, 375, 378, go25, go28
ONE Bus: 31, 44
Greyhound Lines
Newark South Street
Raritan Valley Line diverges at Hunter Connection
Newark Liberty International Airport 12.6 (20.3) 2001[15] Amtrak: Keystone Service, Northeast Regional
NJ Transit: North Jersey Coast Line
AirTrain Newark
Essex / Union county line
5 North Elizabeth 14.4 (23.2) NJ Transit: North Jersey Coast Line
NJT Bus: 112
Elizabeth 15.4 (24.8) 1836 NJ Transit: North Jersey Coast Line
NJT Bus: 26, 48, 52, 56, 57, 58, 59, 62, 112
ONE Bus: 24
South Elizabeth
7 Linden 18.6 (29.9) NJ Transit: North Jersey Coast Line
NJT Bus: 56, 57, 94
8
North Rahway 20.1 (32.3) 1993 Closed due to maintenance issues
Rahway 20.7 (33.3) NJ Transit: North Jersey Coast Line
NJT Bus: 48
Rahway Community Shuttle
North Jersey Coast Line diverges
Union / Middlesex county line
9 Colonia 1876[16] The station opened as "Houtenville".[16]
Iselin June 11, 1972[17]
10 Metropark 24.6 (39.6) November 14, 1971[18] Amtrak: Acela Express, Keystone Service, Northeast Regional, Vermonter
NJT Bus: 48, 801, 802, 803, 804, 805
Menlo Park Early 1957[19]
11 Robinvale 1911[20]
Metuchen 27.1 (43.6) 1888 NJT Bus: 810, 813, 819
Metuchen Community Shuttle
13 Edison 30.3 (48.8) c. 1870[21] Edison Community Shuttle
14 New Brunswick 32.7 (52.6) January 1, 1838[22] Amtrak: Keystone Service, Northeast Regional
NJT Bus: 810, 811, 814, 815, 818
Suburban Trails: 100, Dunellen Local
Coach USA: 100
Rutgers Campus Buses
Brunsquick Shuttles
DASH 1 & 2
New Brunswick Community Shuttle
Jersey Avenue
(limited service)		 34.4 (55.4) October 24, 1963[23]
Middlesex / Mercer county line
19
Adams December 3, 1967[24]
Deans December 3, 1967[24]
Monmouth Junction
Schalks Crossing 1914[25]
Plainsboro The station at Plainsboro, built in the late 1910s, was razed in 1968.[26]
Princeton Junction 48.4 (77.9) 1863 Amtrak: Keystone Service, Northeast Regional
NJ Transit: Princeton Branch (Dinky Shuttle)
NJT Bus: 600, 612
20
Lawrence 1865[27]
Hamilton 54.4 (87.5) 1999[5] NJT Bus: 606, 608
22 Trenton Transit Center 58.1 (93.5) 1863 Amtrak: Acela Express, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Keystone Service, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Silver Star, Vermonter
SEPTA: Trenton Line
NJ Transit: River Line
NJT Bus: 409, 418, 600, 601, 604, 606, 608, 609, 611, 613, 619
SEPTA Suburban Bus: 127
Northeast Corridor and Trenton Line continue south

Bibliography

  • Hart, William (2003). Images of America: Plainsboro. Mount Pleasant, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9780738511689.
  • Pattison, Mary (1949). Colonia Yesterday: A Biographical History of a Small Community. Little & Ives.
  • Wall, John Patrick (1921). History of Middlesex County, New Jersey, 1664-1920, Volume 1. Lewis Historical Publishing Company.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "QUARTERLY RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANALYSIS" (PDF). New Jersey Transit. December 16, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 27, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  2. ↑ Staufer, Alvin F.; Pennypacker, Bert (1968). Pennsy Power II: Steam Diesel and Electric Locomotives of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Medina, Ohio: Alvin F. Staufer. ISBN 978-0-944513-05-7.
  3. ↑ Messer, David W.; Roberts, Charles S. (2002-10-28). Triumph V - Philadelphia to New York 1830 - 2002. Barnard, Roberts and Co., Inc. ISBN 978-0934118279. Retrieved 2015-09-07.
  4. ↑ "North Jersey Coast Timetable" (PDF). Newark, New Jersey: New Jersey Transit. January 17, 2010. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
  5. 1 2 Peterson, Iver (April 18, 1992). "Trenton Sees Proposed Train Station Stealing Its Business". The New York Times. New York, New York: Time Warner. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  6. ↑ "Welcome to Hamilton Station". Hamilton, New Jersey: Nexus Parking Systems. 2009. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  7. ↑ Garbarine, Rachelle (August 22, 1998). "In the Region/New Jersey; Near Trenton, 'Village' and Sculpture Complex Blend". The New York Times. New York, New York: Time Warner. p. 2. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
  8. ↑ Chang, Kathy (January 13, 2013). "NJ Transit announces approval of train station Northeast Corridor line will run through MainStreetNB project, to be built along Route 1 north". The Sentinel. Retrieved 2013-07-22.
  9. ↑ Frasinelli, Mike (January 8, 2013). "New NJ Transit station planned for Northeast Corridor rail line". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2013-01-08.
  10. ↑ Rouse, Karen (January 9, 2014). "NJ Transit hires firm to design train haven". The Record. Retrieved 2014-01-15.
  11. ↑ Frassinelli, Mike (January 8, 2014). "Scarred by Sandy, NJ Transit to get permanent home to store trains". The Star-Ledger. Retrieved 2014-01-15.
  12. 1 2 3 "Northeast Corridor Timetable" (PDF). New York, New York: New Jersey Transit. November 19, 2014. Retrieved November 27, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Newark Dedicates New Station Today". The New York Times. March 23, 1935. p. 13. Retrieved 2010-05-30.
  14. ↑ "Newark Dedicates Its New Terminal". The New York Times. March 24, 1935. p. N1. Retrieved 2010-05-30.
  15. ↑ Gootman, Elissa (October 22, 2001). "New Train Service To Newark Airport". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-02-19.
  16. 1 2 Pattison 1949.
  17. ↑ "MetroPark Services Expanding". The Asbury Park Press. June 11, 1972. p. 18. Retrieved October 6, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "Train Service Starts Today at Metropark". The Asbury Park Press. November 14, 1971. p. 4. Retrieved October 6, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ↑ "PRR to Close Ticket Agency in Edison". The Central New Jersey Home News. October 3, 1958. p. 15. Retrieved October 6, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ↑ "Metuchen Town Meeting Split on Grove Ave. Crossing Plan". The Daily Home News. June 28, 1955. p. 2. Retrieved April 30, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ↑ "Stelton Goes Into History as Edison Use Expands". The Central New Jersey Home News. October 30, 1956. p. 3. Retrieved October 6, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ↑ Wall 1921, p. 295.
  23. ↑ "Eisenhower Raised Moral Issue In Opposing A-Bombing of Japan;". New York Times. New York, New York. October 25, 1963. Retrieved November 27, 2009.
  24. 1 2 Baer, Christopher T. (April 2015). "A General Chronology of the Successors of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company and Their Historical Context: 1967" (PDF). Pennsylvania Railroad Technical Historical Society. p. 40. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
  25. ↑ Hart 2003, p. 28.
  26. ↑ Hart 2003, p. 29.
  27. ↑ Baer, Christopher T. (April 2015). "A General Chronology of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company Its Predecessors and Successors and Its Historical Context: 1865" (PDF). Pennsylvania Railroad Technical Historical Society. p. 92. Retrieved May 21, 2018.

Route map:

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  • "New Jersey Transit - Northeast Corridor Line schedule" (PDF).  (554 KB)
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