NJ Transit Rail Operations is the rail division of NJ Transit. It operates

commuter rail Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...

service in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

, with most service centered on transportation to and from

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, Hoboken, and Newark. NJ Transit also operates rail service in Orange and Rockland counties in New York under contract to Metro-North Railroad. The commuter rail lines saw riders in , making it the second-busiest commuter railroad in North America as well as the longest by route length. This does not include NJ Transit's light rail operations.

Network and infrastructure

The lines operated by NJ Transit were formerly operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad, Central Railroad of New Jersey, New York and Long Branch Railroad and Erie Lackawanna Railroad, most of which date from the mid-19th century. From the 1960s onward, the

New Jersey Department of Transportation The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) is the agency responsible for transportation issues and policy in New Jersey, including maintaining and operating the state's highway and public road system, planning and developing transportat ...

began subsidizing the commuter lines. By 1976, the lines were all operated by Conrail under contract to NJDOT. The system took its current form in 1983, when NJ Transit took over all commuter service in New Jersey. The two networks were not integrated until the opening of Secaucus Junction in 2003, which enabled passengers to transfer between lines bound for New York and Hoboken.

Lines

, NJ Transit's commuter rail network consists of 11 lines and 164 stations, primarily concentrated in northern New Jersey, with one line running between Atlantic City and

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

Current lines

Operations are in two divisions: *Hoboken Division, formerly operated by the Erie Lackawanna Railroad, runs from Hoboken Terminal or through Newark – Broad Street and includes Midtown Direct service via the Kearny Connection. Most station platforms are low-level. *Newark Division, formerly operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad, Central Railroad of New Jersey and New York and Long Branch Railroad, operates through Newark Penn Station via the

Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, ...

, with most trains continuing to

New York Penn Station Pennsylvania Station, also known as New York Penn Station or simply Penn Station, is the main intercity railroad station in New York City and the busiest transportation facility in the Western Hemisphere, serving more than 600,000 passengers ...

. This division also includes the Atlantic City Line formerly operated by the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines. Most station platforms are high-level.

Freight usage

Although NJ Transit itself does not carry freight, NJTR allows freight service to be operated over its lines via trackage rights agreements with several railroads. Conrail (CSAO),

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of trac ...

, Norfolk Southern (NS) and several short lines ( Cape May Seashore Lines (CMSL),

Dover and Delaware River Railroad The Dover and Delaware River Railroad is a short-line railroad operating along of track in the northern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey between Phillipsburg and Newark. It was created in 2019 to take over local freight operations from N ...

(DD),

Morristown & Erie Railway Morristown & Erie Railway is a short-line railroad based in Morristown, New Jersey, chartered in 1895 as the Whippany River Railroad. It operates freight rail service in Morris County, New Jersey and surrounding areas on the original Whippany ...

(M&E), and Southern Railroad of New Jersey (SRNJ) currently have trackage rights contracts to operate freight service on NJ Transit lines. The Morristown & Erie Railway can only use NJT trackage to get between its owned trackage; it cannot serve customers on NJ Transit trackage. A similar situation exists for Conrail on the Atlantic City Line. Below is a list of NJ Transit lines and freight lines that operate on them: *Morristown Line: DD, M&E *Montclair-Boonton Line: DD, M&E *Main Line: NS, M&E *Bergen County Line: NS, M&E *Pascack Valley Line: NS *Raritan Valley Line: CSAO *North Jersey Coast Line: CSAO *Atlantic City Line: CSAO, SRNJ

Non-passenger lines

NJTR also owns several lines not used for regular passenger service. These lines were purchased by the

in the late 1970s for railbanking purposes, with ownership transferring to NJ Transit upon its creation in 1979. These lines are either leased for freight/

tourist Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism ...

service, interim

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetc ...

use, or remain derelict: *Harrison- Kingsland Branch: derelict *Raritan Valley Line: ** High Bridge-

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest ...

: NS **

- Phillipsburg: trackage removed due to construction of

Interstate 78 Interstate 78 (I-78) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Northeastern United States, running from I-81 northeast of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, through Allentown to western and northern New Jersey and terminating at the Holland T ...

in 1989 * Red Bank -South Lakewood: Conrail Shared Assets Operations (CSAO) *Woodmansie-Winslow Junction: derelict *Beesley's Point Secondary: ** Winslow Junction-Palmero/Beesley's Point: CSAO **Palermo-Ocean City: leased to city of Ocean City in 1999 for use as interi
Ocean City Bike Path
rail trail * Tuckahoe- Cape May: Cape May Seashore Lines, Southern Railroad of New Jersey *HX Interlocking (

Hackensack River The Hackensack River is a river, approximately 45 miles (72 km) long, in the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, emptying into Newark Bay, a back chamber of New York Harbor. The watershed of the river includes part of the subur ...

Croxton Yard Croxton may refer to: Places *Croxton, Cambridgeshire, England * Croxton, Lincolnshire, England *Croxton, Jersey City, New Jersey, USA *Croxton, Norfolk, England *Croxton, Staffordshire, England *Croxton Kerrial Croxton Kerrial (pronounced �k ...

: realigned for Secaucus Junction, used as yard lead by NS * Freehold- Farmingdale: derelict * Freehold- Matawan: leased to Monmouth County Park System until 2020 as interim section of Henry Hudson Trail

Ownership

NJT owns most of its tracks, infrastructure, bridges, tunnels and signals. The exceptions are: *Atlantic City Line –

30th Street Station 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

Frankford Junction Frankford Junction is a railroad junction, and former junction station, located on the border between the Harrowgate neighborhood of Philadelphia and Frankford, Philadelphia. At the junction, the 4-track Northeast Corridor line from Trenton co ...

(owned by

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada. ...

) and Frankford Junction to Pennsauken Delair Junction (owned by Conrail) *Northeast Corridor Line – entire line except Morrisville Yard (owned by

) *Port Jervis Line – Suffern to Port Jervis (owned by Norfolk Southern and leased by

Metro-North Metro-North Railroad , trading as MTA Metro-North Railroad, is a suburban commuter rail service run by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), a public authority_of_the__is_a_type_of_Nonprofit_organization">nonprofit_corporation_char ...

) *Raritan Valley Line – Aldene to

Hunter Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

(owned by Conrail) *Montclair-Boonton Line – West of Netcong (owned by Norfolk Southern)

Yards and maintenance

NJ Transit's main storage and maintenance facility is the Meadows Maintenance Complex in Kearny, New Jersey. Other major yard facilities are located at Hoboken Terminal. Amtrak's Sunnyside Yard in

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

, New York serves as a layover facility for trains to

. Additional yards are located at outlying points along the lines. These include: *Main and Bergen County Lines: ** Waldwick Yard **Suffern Yard *Montclair-Boonton Line: **

Great Notch Yard Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great ...

, Little Falls *Morris and Essex Lines: **Gladstone Yard **Summit Yard **Dover Yard **

Port Morris Yard A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...

*North Jersey Coast Line: **Long Branch Yard **Bay Head Yard *Northeast Corridor: **

Morrisville Yard Morrisville Yard is a rail yard used by New Jersey Transit rail operations for trains on its Northeast Corridor Line. It is located about two miles west of the New Jersey state capital, Trenton, in Morrisville, Pennsylvania, and is accessible ...

, Morrisville, PA (near the Trenton Transit Center) **

County Yard 200px, County yard County Yard is a rail yard complex comprising Adams Yard, Delco Lead, and the eponymous County Yard along the Northeast Corridor (NEC). The complex straddles the New Brunswick and North Brunswick border in Central New Jersey ...

, New Brunswick (near Jersey Avenue) **Hudson Yard, Harrison (Serves mostly Raritan Valley Line trains) *Pascack Valley Line: **Woodbine Yard, Spring Valley, NY *Port Jervis Line: **Port Jervis Yard, Port Jervis, NY *Raritan Valley Line: **Raritan Yard **Hudson Yard, Harrison (Shared with Northeast Corridor) NJT has a fleet of maintenance crews and vehicles that repair tracks, spread ballast, deliver supplies and inspect infrastructure. There are eight non-revenue work diesels used for these purposes.

Movable bridges

NJT utilizes numerous moveable bridges: * Dock Bridge, Newark (Passaic River) – Northeast Corridor Line (vertical lift) (''owned and operated by Amtrak'') * Portal Bridge, Secaucus (Hackensack River) – Northeast Corridor Line (swing) (''owned and operated by Amtrak'') * Newark Draw, Newark (Passaic River) – Morristown Line (swing) *

Lower Hack Lift The Lower Hack Lift is a lift bridge carrying the New Jersey Transit Morristown Line across the Hackensack River at mile 3.4, Jersey City, New Jersey. The massive 3-track lift span was built in 1927–28 by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Ra ...

, Jersey City (Hackensack River) – Morristown Line (vertical lift) * Upper Hack Lift, Secaucus (Hackensack River) – Main Line (vertical lift) * HX Draw, Secaucus (Hackensack River) – Bergen County Line and Pascack Valley Line (bascule) * Lyndhurst Draw, Lyndhurst (Passaic River) – Main Line (swing) *

River Draw The Raritan Bay Drawbridge, also known as River-Draw, Raritan Bay Swing Bridge, and Raritan River Railroad Bridge, is a railroad swing bridge crossing the Raritan River from where it empties into the Raritan Bay in Middlesex County, New Jersey, U ...

, South Amboy (Raritan River) – North Jersey Coast Line (swing) * Morgan Draw, Old Bridge (Cheesequake Creek) – North Jersey Coast Line (bascule) * Oceanport Draw, Oceanport (Oceanport Creek) – North Jersey Coast Line (swing) *

Shark River Draw Shark River Draw is a moveable bridge over the Shark River Inlet, an inlet at the mouth of the Shark River in the towns of Belmar and Avon-by-the-Sea Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, just west of the Atlantic Ocean. The bascul ...

, Belmar (Shark River) – North Jersey Coast Line (bascule) *

Brielle Draw Brielle Draw is a railroad bascule bridge over Manasquan River in Brielle and Point Pleasant Beach, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States west of the Manasquan Inlet to the Atlantic Ocean. It carries a single track of the New Jersey Trans ...

, Brielle (Manasquan River) – North Jersey Coast Line (bascule) * Beach Bridge, Atlantic City (Beach Thorofare) – Atlantic City Line (swing) *

Delair Bridge The Delair Bridge (officially the Delair Memorial Railroad Bridge) is a railroad bridge with a vertical-lift section that crosses the Delaware River between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Pennsauken Township, New Jersey, just south of the Betsy ...

, Pennsauken (Delaware River) – Atlantic City Line (vertical lift) (''owned and operated by Conrail'')

Rolling stock

Reporting marks

All NJ Transit Rail Operations equipment in both revenue and non-revenue service carry AAR reporting marks of NJTR without exception. Equipment owned by Metro-North carries AAR reporting marks MNCW without exception.

Locomotives

Active revenue

These locomotives carry NJTR reporting marks for revenue service. Not included are the EMU cars, which are technically locomotives, but are listed in the passenger cars roster below.

Retired revenue

Non-revenue

All non-revenue locomotives are diesel-powered and legally carry the same "NJTR" AAR reporting marks as all other equipment without exception. As these locomotives lack HEP, they do not haul trains in passenger service unless performing a rescue.

Passenger cars

NJ Transit has a fleet of over 1,000 passenger cars. The fleet and examples are described below. Except for the Comet II (which are all trailers), all examples shown are cab cars leading or on the tail end of trains. Car groupings are, except for the Arrow III MUs, arranged in the following order: cab cars, trailers with lavatories, and trailers without lavatories, where applicable. Single Arrow III MU's are GE Model MA-1J, married pairs are GE Model MA-1H. NJ Transit also leased 10

MARC Marc or MARC may refer to: People * Marc (given name), people with the first name * Marc (surname), people with the family name Acronyms * MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging, * MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system of ...

coaches in 2018 to alleviate an equipment shortage.

Stations

NJ Transit provides passenger service on 12 lines at total of 165 stations, some of which are operated in conjunction with

and

(MNCW).

References

External links

NJ TransitNJ Transit Rail

Draft 2012 State Rail Plan
{{USCommRail Electric railways in New Jersey Electric railways in Pennsylvania Electric railways in New York (state) Railway services introduced in 1983 Commuter rail in the United States Standard gauge railways in the United States 1983 establishments in New Jersey