by jmp883
Restoring commuter rail service to Wanaque is a great idea, in theory. In reality, unfortunately, it will never happen. As has already been posted there are ROW issues from Pompton Jct. north to Wanaque. Even if the ROW and environmental issues could be satisfactorily resolved there are other issues that would probably prevent service from ever being restored. That's too bad because upper Passaic County is in dire need of traffic relief. While it doesn't have the same traffic volume as I-80, Route 15, or Route 23 Ringwood Avenue/Passaic County Route 511 has become a nightmare every morning and evening rush hour. I've been living in Wanaque since 1973 and I work for the town. As an example when I finish a midnight shift at 8am it usually takes me between 15 to 20 minutes to get from borough hall to my house in the south end of town. I can add another 5-10 minutes to that if it's raining or snowing.
Idiot Railfan wrote:
I'm not so sure that that statement is entirely true. I think it was the NIMBY's who killed the Ringwood Avenue/Rt. 511 bypass alternates far more than any 'official' research did. Of course there were environmental and ROW issues but I feel that the NIMBY's were the biggest reason why the bypass wasn't built. They wanted traffic relief but they didn't want any new construction in town to accomodate it. And that all occured before I-287 was even opened through to Mahwah. Before I-287 opened all the traffic from upper Passaic County would either come south to Skyline Drive in Ringwood to get to Route 208 or continue south through Wanaque on their way to Riverdale in order to get to Route 23. Since I-287 opened there has no been no relief, traffic has only increased on Ringwood Avenue.
While restoring rail service to Wanaque would be a much needed improvement I don't think it would reduce the traffic load on Ringwood Avenue. Since Wanaque would be the start/end of the line there would need to be a station big enough to handle the riders from the entire upper Passaic County area. By necessity that means a large parking lot for the commuters. That means that we'd still see a lot of traffic during the morning and evening rushes. Making the end of the line at Riverdale/Pompton Lakes or Pompton Plains/Pequannock woudn't benefit Wanaque traffic-wise either. Not much relief in either of those scenarios. Bypass road(s) will probably never be built so the only other option I can see would be via the NJT buses that already run through Wanaque. The buses currently run from Warwick, NY into NYC via the Lincoln Tunnel. However instead of just one bus every hour or so coming through town there would need to be a bus station where the buses could run more frequently. That would also require a large parking lot, again canceling out the benefit of traffic reduction.
It's a shame that back in 1966 no one had the foresight to see what was coming for this area.
Idiot Railfan wrote:
8) In the late 80s and early 90s Passaic County and the state were considering building a road on the ROW west of the site of the Wanaque station from Ringwood Ave. near West Brook Road, reconnecting with Ringwood Ave. several miles south to alleviate traffic on Ringwood Ave. It was determined it would not make a big difference and in fact would create bottlenecks were the bypass connected with Ringwood Ave.
I'm not so sure that that statement is entirely true. I think it was the NIMBY's who killed the Ringwood Avenue/Rt. 511 bypass alternates far more than any 'official' research did. Of course there were environmental and ROW issues but I feel that the NIMBY's were the biggest reason why the bypass wasn't built. They wanted traffic relief but they didn't want any new construction in town to accomodate it. And that all occured before I-287 was even opened through to Mahwah. Before I-287 opened all the traffic from upper Passaic County would either come south to Skyline Drive in Ringwood to get to Route 208 or continue south through Wanaque on their way to Riverdale in order to get to Route 23. Since I-287 opened there has no been no relief, traffic has only increased on Ringwood Avenue.
While restoring rail service to Wanaque would be a much needed improvement I don't think it would reduce the traffic load on Ringwood Avenue. Since Wanaque would be the start/end of the line there would need to be a station big enough to handle the riders from the entire upper Passaic County area. By necessity that means a large parking lot for the commuters. That means that we'd still see a lot of traffic during the morning and evening rushes. Making the end of the line at Riverdale/Pompton Lakes or Pompton Plains/Pequannock woudn't benefit Wanaque traffic-wise either. Not much relief in either of those scenarios. Bypass road(s) will probably never be built so the only other option I can see would be via the NJT buses that already run through Wanaque. The buses currently run from Warwick, NY into NYC via the Lincoln Tunnel. However instead of just one bus every hour or so coming through town there would need to be a bus station where the buses could run more frequently. That would also require a large parking lot, again canceling out the benefit of traffic reduction.
It's a shame that back in 1966 no one had the foresight to see what was coming for this area.
Joe P, KC2PJL
Charter Member of the Red Knights International Motorcycle Club, NJ Chapter 15
Amateur radio....the only REAL radio left in the world.
Emergency Services Dispatcher
Charter Member of the Red Knights International Motorcycle Club, NJ Chapter 15
Amateur radio....the only REAL radio left in the world.
Emergency Services Dispatcher