Reviving passenger service between West Trenton & Bound Brook

NJT finally updated the page. I remember checking it a month ago and it still said January 2006 at the bottom.

Hmm.... I wonder if the optional elements are still on the table at all or if they are completely rejected. Two in particular:

Manville Station: The high density of this area seems to make it an obvious place for more transit options.

Flyover of the ex-LV: A diamond crossing here seems like a poor choice considering the traffic on the LV. If a train is late from WT, does that mean that it has to wait several minutes for a super long freight train to pass and then miss its subsequent slots on the LV between Aldene and Hunter and on the corridor? Then again, IANARR.

Interesting! It looks like the West Trenton Line restoration project is giving the Cutoff project a run for its money! They seem neck and neck now with the EA draft already poised to go to the FEDS. Although this project is also not funded, it is costing much less then the $550 million tag for the Cutoff, so perhaps the Cutoff may get shelved in favor of this project now... Just an observation.

actually its not giving the cutoff a run for its money as this project is still in the infancy stages.
What it is doing is competing with the Northern Branch service
from my northern branch documents this is the formula and timeline
Draft EIS, agency review and public comments, Final EIS, Record of Decision, agency action.
Cutoff is up to Final EIS I believe. Look how long this took with that project
BTW. With the news of this project advancing, and the northern branch/cutoff moving ahead..is NJT expecting more money in the future? I don't know how all these projects move ahead in a bankrupt state?

northjerseybuff wrote:actually its not giving the cutoff a run for its money as this project is still in the infancy stages.
What it is doing is competing with the Northern Branch service
from my northern branch documents this is the formula and timeline
Draft EIS, agency review and public comments, Final EIS, Record of Decision, agency action.
Cutoff is up to Final EIS I believe. Look how long this took with that project
BTW. With the news of this project advancing, and the northern branch/cutoff moving ahead..is NJT expecting more money in the future? I don't know how all these projects move ahead in a bankrupt state?

AFAICT, NJT is trying to avoid the EIS process entirely with the Cutoff and West Trenton by submitting Environmental Assessments. They are hoping to get a ruling of No Significant Impact so that they do not have to complete an Environmental Impact Statement.

I could be getting the process all confused though.

I'm hoping a couple different things can come together here to build something at Trenton/Mercer Airport.

The West Trenton Line runs along the boundary of Trenton/Mercer airport, very close to the airfield. I was hoping they would study building a joint use facility on the property of the former Naval Air Warfare center which abuts the airfield and the West Trenton line, the Naval Airwarfare center is a large industrial brownfield since the center closed and moved to lakehurst.

As part of a remediation of the NAWC at TTN (airport code) they could clear out the NAWC and build a new airport terminal to accomodate airport expansion, attached to the airport terminal I would build a new rail terminal to house both SEPTA and NJ Transit by moving the SEPTA terminus one mile up the line to the NAWC airport site. All on the current NAWC site.

Directly across the street from the NAWC is a large cleared industrial site that has sat vacant for years, it's the perfect place to build a parking garage to cater to SEPTA, NJ Transit commuters as well as long term airport parking and Rental car agencies.

The ever growing congestion of EWR, JFK, LGA and PHL, as well as the Port Aurthority's efforts to divert some of that business to secondary airports (as evident by their takeover of Stewart Airport) makes TTN another perfect alternate airport to be developed.

Trenton Mercer Airport (TTN) is actualy closer to Manhattan than SWF (Stewart Airport), TTN sits right alongside I-95 with easy access to Bucks, Montgomery Counties and Philadelphia Pennsylvania.

It also has a rail line that can access both Center City Philadelphia (with a mere one mile extension of SEPTA service) and Newark/Hoboken/Manhattan via a restored West Trenton line.

Too bad that Trenton-Mercer is served by Pan Am (ugh!)

From the Courier-News Online:

HILLSBOROUGH: Residents want more information on proposed rail line


By PAMELA SROKA-HOLZMANN
STAFF WRITER

HILLSBOROUGH -- Following a New Jersey Transit presentation Thursday on plans to reactivate the 27-mile West Trenton rail line, residents and commuters left the meeting wanting more information on the proposed project.

The proposed line would link the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) West Trenton Station in Ewing to NJ Transit's Raritan Valley Line in Bridgewater, where service on the Raritan Valley Line continues to Newark Penn Station.

Five new stations are proposed in Ewing, Hopewell Township, Hopewell Borough, Hillsborough and Montgomery. The West Trenton Line, now owned by CSX, is part of the former Reading Railroad.

Thursday's meeting focused on the initial piece of the $218 million project's puzzle -- gathering public feedback in Somerset County on New Jersey Transit's recent environmental impact statement. A similar presentation is scheduled to be held next week in Mercer County.

The project is supported by most municipal officials in Hillsborough, Montgomery, Hopewell Township and Hopewell Borough. In fact, Hillsborough Mayor Anthony Ferrera announced Thursday that the township will seek approval of a resolution in support of the proposal. The resolution is expected to be approved during the Dec. 11 Township Committee meeting and will kick off the lobbying campaign to make the plan a "state transportation priority," Ferrera said.

Since 1982, the West Trenton line had halted passenger service and now offers only freight service. Lisa DiTaranti, assistant vice president for Systra Consulting, the firm handling the project for New Jersey Transit, said there is a need to restore service because of projected population-growth figures and traffic on roads such as Route 206.

"The lack of transportation alternatives in this part of the state and existing infrastructure are inconvenient and over capacity," DiTaranti told the public. "So options are needed for transportation in this part of the state."

DiTaranti said it has been estimated that 2,660 people would be riding on the train by 2025 and about 1,000 auto trips and 240 bus trips would be diverted as a result of the reactivation.

The $218 million cost, to which many residents were opposed, includes $75 million for labor and equipment, $1 million for land acquisition, $79 million for rolling stock, $26 million in soft costs, $29 million in contingency and $8 million for overhead and profit.

"It's just too expensive," said Budd Darvin, a Montgomery resident for 38 ears. "To maintain it, the cost will be far greater than what is received."

DiTaranti said five morning trains from 7 to 9 a.m. and single midday and evening trains are being proposed. The commute would include stops at the existing Raritan Valley line stations from Bridgewater to Newark. From Newark Penn Station to West Trenton, there would be a single morning outbound and a single midday train, as well as five evening trains, which also would include stops at the existing Raritan Valley station from Newark to Bridgewater.

From West Trenton to Newark, the trip would take about an hour and 20 minutes, DiTaranti said.

A proposed train storage yard would be built in Ewing Township, adjacent to the West Trenton station. There, a seven-track yard would house the trains at night for cleaning and refueling. In the morning, the train would pull out empty, DiTaranti said.

In Montgomery, an existing Belle Mead station would be restored, and in Hillsborough, a station would be constructed near Royce Brook Road with access to ramps on Amwell Road in conjunction with the future Route 206 Bypass project. About 1,200 parking spaces along the West Trenton line also are proposed.

DiTaranti pointed out such mitigating impacts in the environmental study as knocking down trees for parking lots, vehicular traffic at railroad crossings, disturbing aquatic life in wetland areas and some hazardous-material impacts that would need further testing.

After reviewing plans, Hillsborough resident Valerie Chaucer-Levine said she would like to see the train operating on the weekends and had concerns about the noise of train whistles.

Another Hillsborough resident, Jill Baum, who lives off Willow Road near the tracks, said vehicles entering the parking lots would create fumes near her home.

"Car and diesel fumes in one spot. Is that clean air?" she said.
Other residents simply wanted more answers.

"I think they didn't take a few things into account and glossed over ... the Belle Mead station is a mile and a half from the Hillsborough station. That's too close together," Hillsborough resident Michael Izzo said. "Fine particulate pollution breathed deeply into lungs can cause asthma ... and the noise is absolutely going to be horrific having 12 trains stop and go at Royce Brook Estates."

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann can be reached at (908) 707-3155 or [email protected].

What you can do:

New Jersey Transit has released its proposed restoration of passenger rail service on the West Trenton Line Draft Environmental Assessment for public comment. It is available at www.njtransit.com. Comments on the Draft Environmental Assessment will be accepted until Jan. 15, 2008, by mail sent to Thomas Clark, Office of Government and Community Relations, NJ Transit, 1 Penn Plaza E., Newark, NJ 07105-2245, or by e-mail at [email protected].

Link to Courier-News Article

In reading this article, many in Hillsborough and Montgomery last night were NIMBYs. The bottom line is that West Trenton needs to be restored and the sooner the better, IMO. Weekend service needs to happen as well for W. Trenton. I bolded a couple of highlights from last night's meeting. Thought you guys might find them interesting.

From the Star-Ledger:

W. Trenton rail line no closer to reality
Price tag of $219M presents a problem
Friday, November 30, 2007
BY JOE TYRRELL
Star-Ledger Staff
After years of studies, the idea of restoring passenger service on the West Trenton rail line has progressed on paper, but not beyond it, transportation officials said last night.

The latest assessment determined there are no environmental obstacles to rebuilding sections of track and adding stations on the freight line through northern Mercer and southern Somerset counties, said Jack Kanarek, senior director of project development.

But the "very expensive" project now carries an estimated construction cost of $219 million, consultant Lisa DiTaranti told an informational session at the Hillsborough municipal center. That's up from $195 million three years ago and $59.3 million in 1990.

Acknowledging funds for transit construction are "constricted," Kanarek said that even when money becomes available, other projects are also in line, such as restoring the defunct Lackawanna Cutoff through Morris, Sussex and Warren counties.

"Some of the other projects have (financial) estimates that are more promising," he said, "but there are other factors that are considered, public support, the region's transportation needs."

In addition to the construction costs, the report estimates it would cost $15 million in 2025 to operate seven daily passenger trains, compared with just under $3.9 million in revenue.

Of that income, about $2.8 million would be paid by new riders, with the rest coming from people switching from the Raritan Valley and Northeast Corridor lines, according to the report.

But in January, NJ Transit projected most of the people using the West Trenton line would be switching from other trains or buses. Of the 1,330 daily riders expected in 2025, the transit agency found, only 37.5 percent would be new to mass transit.

Despite the financial pitfalls, many of those attending last night's session said they support the concept of the line if it can be made to work.

"I used that line 30 years ago," before passenger service ended and some track was removed, said Assemblyman Peter Biondi (R-Somerset), a former Hillsborough mayor. With plans for a new station in Hillsborough, restoring passenger service would "absolutely" help local commuters, he said.

But the project would be more attractive if the Port Authority completes a proposed rail tunnel under the Hudson River, Biondi said. That would allow commuters using the Raritan Valley Line to travel directly to New York instead of transferring at Newark.

"I'm not a commuter, but it could certainly help things" on overcrowded local roads, said Hillsborough resident Kevin Hayes.

Resident Kelly Ellis said the plan would be more attractive if eastbound West Trenton trains stopped only at Bound Brook on the Raritan Valley Line and then were expresses to New York Penn Station.

James Raleigh of Colts Neck, who monitors rail projects, said the plan glosses over some issues, such as safety problems at grade crossings. While officials tout the poten tial for ridership to a new station planned for Merrill Lynch in Hopewell Township, success there could require more trains, he said.

Another informational session is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday in the Ewing Community/Senior Center. NJ Transit will continue to ac cept comments on the environmental assessment until Jan. 15, Kanarek said.

Link to Star-Ledger Article

Hmmm, that is dissapointing.

And is it me, or are their estimates in terms of the sucess and use of the line conservative? Hillsborough is just exploding and will only continue to do so.

An updated pic of the old Reading Belle Meade Station on the West Trenton Line:

CSX 2692 passing the station, Nov 2007

Compare with:

CSX 2725 passing the station, Jan 2006

The station has fallen farther into disrepair with the roof sustaining more damage since I last saw the structure. Also, the Jersey City bound shelter appears to have suffered a partial roof collapse. Any chance of saving these two structures?

Another very good article (but long) on the West Trenton Line at NJ.com and i think was published in the Trenton Times

http://www.nj.com/news/times/index.ssf? ... thispage=1

Where in the world would they place that yard? I would suppose that if they wanted to do it the cheap way, they'd reactivate the branch that crosses 206 right by the hillsborough star diner, and reactivate the old VA depot/yard. Any ideas on where they want to put it?

NJT must move forward with this quick. It'll only get even more expensive as time goes by. What must be done is to re double track the line and build that flyover they need. Several traisn a days isn't enough. There should be atleast a dozen.

NJTRailfan wrote:NJT must move forward with this quick. It'll only get even more expensive as time goes by. What must be done is to re double track the line and build that flyover they need. Several traisn a days isn't enough. There should be atleast a dozen.

14 trains a day on a very odd inbound/outbound schedule. Trains will probably be an F40, two coaches, and a cab

Not really - i mean its not hourly service, but it will probably be like 6 inbounds and like 8 outbounds.

At first, it would be like the pascack valley line was, with mainly commuter service (in in the AM, out in the PM) - then eventually ridership would increase to the point of adding more trains, and then eventually maybe all day, off peak service in both directions.

Remember, not too long ago in the earlier days of NJT, thats how even the heavier traveled Coast Line and NEC were set up, mainly for commuters and not all day/off peak service.