Raritan Valley Line

Raritan Valley Line
Train #5439 stops at Dunellen.
Overview
Type	Commuter rail
System	New Jersey Transit Rail Operations
Status	Operational
Locale	Northern New Jersey
Termini	New York Penn Station (weekday off-peak service) Newark Penn Station Raritan High Bridge (limited service)
Stations	20
Daily ridership	21,800 (FY 2012)[1]
Operation
Owner	Amtrak (east of Hunter) CSAO (Hunter to Aldene) New Jersey Transit (Aldene westward)
Operator(s)	New Jersey Transit
Rolling stock	GP40PH-2 locomotives Alstom PL42AC Bombardier ALP-45DP locomotives Comet IIM, IV, and V Bombardier MultiLevels
Technical
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Electrification	12 kV 25 Hz AC (Newark-New York only)
Operating speed	80 mph (128.75 km/h) (top speed)
Route map Amtrak NEC & LIRR to Long Island & Boston Sunnyside Yard East River Tunnels East River New York – Penn Station Hudson River NY NJ North River Tunnels Secaucus Junction Hackensack River via Portal Bridge Waterfront Connection to Hoboken Terminal Kearny Connection toward Newark – Broad Street N.J. Turnpike PATH to World Trade Center Harrison Passaic River via Dock Bridge 0.0 mi 0 km Newark – Penn Station Newark – South Street Route 21 Conrail Lehigh Line Hunter Connection Amtrak & NJT NEC to Trenton & Philadelphia Route 27 I-78 US 22 Union 7.2 mi 11.6 km Roselle Park Route 28 CNJ Main Line Aldene Connection Conrail Lehigh Line G.S. Parkway 9.5 mi 15.3 km Cranford 10.6 mi 17.1 km Garwood 11.8 mi 19 km Westfield Route 28 13.9 mi 22.4 km Fanwood 15.1 mi 24.3 km Netherwood 16.3 mi 26.2 km Plainfield Route 28 17.4 mi 28 km Grant Avenue Clinton Avenue 19.2 mi 30.9 km Dunellen Middlesex 23.5 mi 37.8 km Bound Brook to Conrail Lehigh Line I-287 Bridgewater West Trenton Line to West Trenton Chimney Rock Spur Finderne 27.9 mi 44.9 km Somerville CNJ Central Branch to Flemington US 206 29.1 mi 46.8 km Raritan Raritan Yard US 202 North Branch Raritan River North Branch White House Rockaway Valley Railroad to Watnong Lebanon US 22 I-78 Annandale South Branch Raritan River High Bridge former passenger service CNJ High Bridge Branch to Wharton Glen Gardner Route 31 DL&W Hampton Branch to Washington Hampton Ludlow I-78 / US 22 Bloomsbury Musconetcong River NS Lehigh Line I-78 route severed Morris Canal NS Lehigh Line LV Main Line Phillipsburg NS Washington Secondary to Morris & Essex Lines Bel-Del Connector Belvidere & Delaware River Rwy Main Line Morris Canal Delaware River NJ PA NS Lehigh Line to Easton

The Raritan Valley Line is a commuter rail service operated by New Jersey Transit (NJT) which serves passengers in municipalities in Union, Somerset, and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey. The line's most frequent western terminus is Raritan station in Raritan. Some weekday trains continue further west and terminate at the High Bridge station, located in High Bridge. Most eastbound trains terminate in Newark; passengers bound for New York make a cross-platform transfer. A limited number of weekday days continue directly to New York.

Raritan Valley Line trains use three different lines owned by three different entities. Between High Bridge and the Aldene Connection, east of Cranford, it uses the former Central Railroad of New Jersey Main Line, now owned by New Jersey Transit and also called the Raritan Valley Line. From the Aldene Connection to Hunter it uses Conrail's Lehigh Line, formerly the east end of Lehigh Valley Railroad Main Line. Finally, it uses Amtrak's Northeast Corridor from the Hunter Connection to Newark and New York.

The Raritan Valley Line is colored orange on New Jersey Transit's system map. Its symbol is the Statue of Liberty, an homage to the Central Railroad of New Jersey, whose logo was also the Statue of Liberty.^[2]

Description

Most of the line follows the main line of the former Central Railroad of New Jersey. Historically, CNJ trains ran on this line, as part of its Lehigh-Susquehanna Division, from Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton in eastern Pennsylvania, through Elizabeth and Bayonne to Jersey City.

Until 1967 CNJ service terminated at the company's Communipaw Terminal in what is today Liberty State Park.^[3] This station, which was also served by Reading Company trains to Philadelphia and B & O service to Washington, D.C. and beyond, had connections by chartered bus or ferry into Manhattan (the ferries serving the financial district).

At the end of April 1967, the Aldene Connection opened, connecting the CNJ main line to the Lehigh Valley Railroad (now Conrail's Lehigh Line), and trains were re-routed to Newark Penn Station on the Northeast Corridor via Hunter Connection. This allowed CNJ to end the ferry service between Jersey City and Manhattan, which was losing money.^[4]

The former CNJ Main Line was conveyed to Conrail on the former's bankruptcy in 1976. Conrail sold the line to the state of New Jersey in 1978 but continued to operate commuter service under contract.^[5]

Trains initially could not go beyond Newark Penn Station to New York Penn Station because the locomotives were diesel-powered, and diesel locomotives cannot operate in the North River Tunnels. The introduction of ALP-45DP dual-mode locomotives allows for direct service to New York Penn Station.^[6] Limited, service to New York Penn Station started as a pilot program on March 3, 2014. Select trains scheduled to arrive at New York Penn Station provide one-seat rides to New York. This original "pilot project" schedule has been subsequently expanded to include additional trains.

Unlike the Northeast Corridor, the majority of station stops on the Raritan Valley Line are not wheelchair accessible. Newark Penn Station, Union, Cranford, Westfield, Plainfield, and Somerville are accessible, high-platform stations. Roselle Park has a high platform but does not have a ramp or elevator to the street.^[7]

In September 2018, lasting until early 2019, all Raritan Valley Line service has been truncated to Newark Penn Station to allow for positive train control installation.

Rolling stock

The Whitehouse Station

The Raritan Valley Line uses all diesel service. The locomotives originally consisted of the GP40PH-2(A and B) and Alstom PL42AC with a 5- or 6-car set of Comet series coaches. Since late 2008, Bombardier Multilevel Series Coaches were added and displaced most of the Comet coaches. As of late 2013, the trainsets' consist use an ALP-45DP and a 6-8 car set of Multilevels. However, some occasional trains use the Comet coaches coupled with a PL42AC or an ALP-45DP. NJT had acquired several GE P40DC locomotives from Amtrak in 2007, but were soon transferred to ACES in 2009 and then back in 2011 due to a planned discontinuation. Due to the lack of buyers, the locomotives stayed in NJT's property indefinitely until 2014, when they were sold to the Connecticut Department of Transportation.

With the initiation of select, direct, service to New York Penn Station on the Raritan Valley Line in March 2014, dual-mode Bombardier ALP-45DP locomotives (combination diesel and electric power) were added to the RVL rolling stock to incorporate the "one seat ride" to and from Raritan or High Bridge and Penn Station in New York.

The line's rolling stock is stored at the Raritan Yard, the line's only rail yard, located just west of the station. All eastbound trains change crews here and trains are normally stored here overnight. This is also one of two fueling facilities for NJT locomotives (the other is at Hoboken Terminal). All trains terminating in Newark head to the Meadows Maintenance Complex in Kearny, New Jersey to be stored.

In May and June of 2018, NJ Transit leased 10 MARC Train to be exclusively operated on the Raritan Valley Line. These cars have since been sent back to MARC.^[8]

Proposed extensions

Stations

Zone [14]	Station[14]	Miles (km) from NYP	Date opened	Date closed	Connections / notes[14]
Northeast Corridor and City Terminal Zone continue east
1	New York – Penn Station (limited service)	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, Northeast Corridor, and North Jersey Coast Lines NYC Subway: ​ ​ (at 34th Street – Penn Station (Seventh Avenue)) ​ ​ (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 (limited service)	3.5 (5.6)	2003		NJ Transit: Gladstone, Main, Meadowlands, Montclair-Boonton, Morristown, Pascack Valley, Lines Metro-North: Port Jervis Line NJT Bus: 2, 78, 129, 329, 353
	Hudson / Essex county line
	Montclair-Boonton, Morristown, and Gladstone Lines diverge at Kearny Connection North Jersey Coast Line service from Hoboken converges at Waterfront Connection
	Newark – Penn Station	10.0 (16.1)	1935[15][16]		Amtrak: Acela Express, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Keystone Service, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Silver Star, Vermonter NJ Transit: Northeast Corridor and North Jersey Coast 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
Northeast Corridor (Northeast Corridor and North Jersey Coast Lines) diverges at Hunter Connection
Essex / Union county line
5	Union		1832		NJT Bus: 26, 52
7	Roselle Park		1832		NJT Bus: 94, 113
	Aldene Connection between former Jersey Central and current Lehigh Valley Main Lines
	Cranford		1839[17]		NJT Bus: 59, 113 Olympia Trails: Westfield Commuter Service
8	Garwood		1892[17]		NJT Bus: 59, 113 Olympia Trails: Westfield Commuter Service
	Westfield		1839[18]		NJT Bus: 59, 113 Olympia Trails: Westfield Commuter Service
9	Fanwood		1837		NJT Bus: 113 Olympia Trails: Westfield Commuter Service
10	Netherwood		1874[19]		NJT Bus: 113, 882 Olympia Trails: Westfield Commuter Service
11	Plainfield		1839[19]		NJT Bus: 59, 65, 66, 113, 114, 819, 822, 896
	Grant Avenue		1885[20]	April 26, 1986[21]
	Clinton Avenue		1872[20]	April 30, 1967
Union / Middlesex county line
12	Dunellen		1840[22]		NJT Bus: 59, 65, 66, 113, 114 Suburban Trails: Dunellen Local
13	Middlesex		c. 1893[22]
Middlesex / Somerset county line
14	Bound Brook		1840[23]		Somerset County Transportation: DASH
15	Bridgewater				Known as Calco from 1915[23]–1996
	West Trenton Line diverges
	Finderne		1851[23]	2006	Closed due to low ridership
17	Somerville		1842[24]		NJT Bus: 65, 114
	Raritan		c. 1851[25]
18	North Branch (limited service)		1848[25]
Somerset / Hunterdon county line
19	White House (limited service)		Late 1840s[25]
20	Lebanon (limited service)		c. 1852[25]
	Annandale (limited service)		1852[26]
21	High Bridge (limited service)		1852[26]
	Glen Gardner		1852[27]	January 1, 1984[28]	The station was known as Clarkville from 1852–November 1864 and Spruce Run until the early 1870s.[27]
	Hampton		1852[27]	January 1, 1984[28]
	Ludlow		c. 1852-1854[29]	1967
	Bloomsbury		1852[30]	1967
	Phillipsburg Union Station		1852[31]	January 1, 1984[28]
	Lehigh Line continues west

Bibliography

• Bernhart, Benjamin L. (2004). Historic Journeys By Rail: Central Railroad of New Jersey Stations, Structures & Marine Equipment. Outer Station Project. ISBN 1891402072.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Raritan Valley Line (New Jersey Transit).