New York

NJ Transit Releases Summer Schedules for Penn Station Repair Work

What to Know

  • NJ Transit has released schedule changes for the summer's extensive repair work at Penn Station
  • Commuters from towns due west of Manhattan will bear most of the pain. Rail lines serving those areas will be diverted to Hoboken
  • NJ Transit's other lines were mostly spared

New Jersey Transit released schedule changes Friday to accommodate this summer's extensive repair work at New York's Penn Station that is aimed at replacing aging parts and equipment that contributed to two recent derailments and numerous other failures.

Commuters from towns due west of Manhattan, as far as Hackettstown, will bear most of the pain. Rail lines serving those areas will be diverted to Hoboken, where commuters will transfer to New York Waterway ferries or trains operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

There is an exception: Four trains on the Morristown Line originating in Hackettstown that arrive in New York before 7 a.m. will be spared the Hoboken diversion. Trains that normally would arrive in New York after 7 a.m. will be diverted.

NJ Transit's other lines mostly were spared. The Northeast Corridor Line from Trenton to Manhattan, the most heavily traveled line, and the North Jersey Coast Line will have minor time changes, though NJCL trains that normally would go to Hoboken will terminate at Newark, where commuters will have to switch to a train to Secaucus and then to Hoboken.

Below is the service plan as released by NJ Transit

The following service plan will be in place weekdays from July 10th through September 1st. All Morris & Essex Lines (M&E) customers should check the new schedules for train times and station stops as changes have been made.

  • Midtown Direct trains on the Morristown Line scheduled to arrive in PSNY after 7:00 a.m. will be diverted to Hoboken for the rest of the service day. Important Note: Customers traveling into New York on four early morning Midtown Direct trains will not have return service in the p.m.; they should travel to Hoboken to access westbound M&E trains.
  • The four Morris & Essex Lines Midtown Direct trains are:
    • 6602, the 5:44 a.m. arrival at Penn Station New York
    • 6604, the 6:29 a.m. arrival at Penn Station New York
    • 6696, the 6:54 a.m. arrival at Penn Station New York (Please check schedule for station stops.)
    • 6306, the 6:58 a.m. arrival at Penn Station New York. (Please check schedules for station stops.)
  • Midtown Direct trains on the Gladstone Branch will be diverted to/from Hoboken.
  • Midtown Direct trains on the Montclair-Boonton Line will operate on regular weekday schedules with minor time changes to/from PSNY. Montclair-Boonton Line Midtown Direct trains will not stop at Broad Street Station during peak hours. Note: All Montclair-Boonton Line customers should check the schedules as station stops may have changed.
  • All Northeast Corridor and North Jersey Coast Line trains to PSNY will operate on regular weekday schedules with minor time changes to/from PSNY.
    • Hoboken-bound North Jersey Coast Line trains will terminate at Newark Penn Station. Note: Customers can utilize rail service to Secaucus and transfer to Hoboken-bound trains. Hoboken tickets will be honored at Secaucus. See gate agent upon arrival.
  • Raritan Valley Line trains will operate on regular weekday schedules with minor adjustments.
  • Main/Bergen, Pascack Valley and Port Jervis Lines will operate on regular weekday schedules, however, connecting PATH trains at Hoboken Terminal may be different.
  • Atlantic City Line will operate on regular weekday schedules.

New York Waterway will offer ferry service from Hoboken to midtown Manhattan in addition to its regular service to lower Manhattan.

Amtrak opted to accelerate its scheduled repair work at Penn Station, initially to be performed over a few years, after two recent derailments and other breakdowns. Delays at Penn Station affect rail service up and down the corridor between Boston and Washington, D.C.

Three of the station's 21 tracks will be shut down at a time as work is done on rails and track switches, the points where trains entering and leaving the station are routed to different tracks.

NJ Transit Executive Director Steve Santoro said last week it was decided to divert western-originating trains to Hoboken rather than divert Northeast Corridor and North Jersey Coast Line trains at Newark to avoid overcrowding at Newark, which also is the terminus for the Raritan Valley Line and for customers on the Port Authority Trans-Hudson line.

PATH, operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, expects to handle roughly 7,000 more passengers at Hoboken in both the morning and afternoon peak periods, and plans to add cars to its trains to accommodate.

New York Waterway, a private ferry company, has about 9,000 seats available on its boats from Hoboken to two downtown Manhattan locations during peak periods, company Chairman Armand Pohan said last week.

Printable schedules will be available Friday at www.njtransit.com/theupdate.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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