Where to Find Multilevels

This summer I will be going on a railfanning trip to NYC/NJ and I am curious as to where my best chances of riding on a Multilevel are.

The RVL is a 100% chance of finding MLs since all sets are scheduled to run with MLs. Finding Comets on that line is a rare exception these days.

How likely is it to find them on the NEC?

They are fairly common. If you stand on the SEC platform during rush hour, you can see all kinds of consists roll by.

Most of the weekend Midtown Directs are MLs.

The real question is where can you NOT find Multilevels on the NJT system lol. And yes, I know where.

Fan Railer wrote:The real question is where can you NOT find Multilevels on the NJT system lol. And yes, I know where.

Try the PVL. Correct me if I'm wrong here, but isn't the PVL the only line that doesn't run multi-levels? Yes I understand about equipment agreements with Metro-North, and they need to be inspected every 3 days, not many pit tracks, etc. But I'd like to know when exactly the pvl will start seeing multi-levels? (preferably in my lifetime )

Fan Railer wrote:The real question is where can you NOT find Multilevels on the NJT system lol. And yes, I know where.

ACL, diesel section of the Boonton Line (MSU-Denville and west of Dover) and Gladstone (not sure if the two Midtown Direct roundtrips are still single level).

Why no multilevels on the boonotn line?

jackintosh11 wrote:Why no multilevels on the boonotn line?

Ridership doesn't warrant it.

There are, obviously, also no multilevels on the Princeton Branch.

The last time I saw the Gladstone Midtown Directs both sets had Multilevels, the PVL does see a Multilevel set on rare occasions but if you really want to ride them your best bet is the Northeast Corridor. Most of the trains on the Northeast Corridor use Multilevels and if you go during rush hour you won't have a problem finding one. The Raritan Line is almost all Multilevels but with the recent schedule change trains 5714 and 5733 now use Comets and most likely will until October.

They do run them on the Main and Bergen Lines regularly. I haven't been on one in over 2 years though. They had them on 1708, 1712, 1725, and 1727 before. All of the most recent times I took those trains, Comets showed up. I think they run 3 sets on weekdays and 2 on weekends, the rest are mostly Comet 5's, but did see some 2m's and 4's last week. Saw Multilevels on 1169 and 1120 just last week. Like I said, they run a few sets each day on that line, you just need to figure out what trains are using them. They do not run west of Suffern except if there is a breakdown and that's what's available to fill in.

Meadowlands shuttles frequently have them, but most of the time it has been running, they are using sets of 8 Comets. I think they're often NJCL sets that they threw a PL42AC on.

5733 the 4:44 pm Newark Penn to High Bridge the other day had single levels. This morning I'm on 5718 the 6:41 am High Bridge to Newark Penn which is single levels. Been a very long time, Super Bowl weeks I think, since last I saw or was on a single level set on the Raritan Valley Line.

Later in the trip I asked the conductor and he indicated that some RVL equipment was swapped with Coast Line equipment for the summer one-seat Bay Head Junction - NY Penn service.

ChrisU wrote:The last time I saw the Gladstone Midtown Directs both sets had Multilevels, the PVL does see a Multilevel set on rare occasions but if you really want to ride them your best bet is the Northeast Corridor. Most of the trains on the Northeast Corridor use Multilevels and if you go during rush hour you won't have a problem finding one. The Raritan Line is almost all Multilevels but with the recent schedule change trains 5714 and 5733 now use Comets and most likely will until October.

Gladstone trains have been entirely MultiLEVELS for MidTOWN trains since about October of 2013. On very rare occasions since then, single levels have been used.