Bound Brook trackage

Looking for information on the W Trenton-Bound Brook trackage, the particular question being was it 4 track main the whole way, or were there sections of 2 track main. Any links or info is much appreciated!

Thursday 1/17, opened up the mailbox to find the latest edition of <i> The Bee Line</i> containing the answer in the Seven O Klocker's Klub article. Amazing!

FYI the Raritan River crossing, & the Delaware River crossing were never 4 track. The rest of the route between Philly & the CNJ was, but for how long I don't know. There was an article in a 1966 issue of <i> Trains</i> on West Trenton that showed some 2 track at "Crusher's Curve" by WWII, so it may not have lasted long as 4 track from river to river.

i rode the reading secondary between bound brook and port reading the other day out qualifying , the r.o.w. and some bridge abutments look like it was once 2 track.

kp5308 wrote:Thursday 1/17, opened up the mailbox to find the latest edition of <i> The Bee Line</i> containing the answer in the Seven O Klocker's Klub article. Amazing!

FYI the Raritan River crossing, & the Delaware River crossing were never 4 track. The rest of the route between Philly & the CNJ was,

I thought the four track ROW only went as far south on the PA side as Neshaminy where it split between the passenger main and the NY Short Line. There are pictures in the book "Rails Along The Schuykill" showing only two tracks at West Trenton in 1930 and another showing four tracks at Parkland in 1934 (between Neshaminy and Langhorne). I know that the current West Trenton line was never four tracks below Neshaminy, nor was the main from Jenkitown to Wayne Junction as there's no way four tracks could have squeezed through the rock cuts at Elkins Park and Oak Lane.

The scheme of things on the New York Branch around the turn of the 20th Century was double track with center sidings. The last of these was the Ewing Middle which lasted until Conrail days. In the teens the branch was substantially 4-tracked east of Neshaminy Falls except between Yardley and Glenmore and between Manville and Bound Brook Jct. In the early 1950's much of the 4th track was eliminated with a centralized traffic control project across New Jersey; not too many years later the 3rd track started to be retired. In Pennsylvania, the excess tracks were eliminated in the early 1960's except for Track 4 between Neshaminy Falls and Woodbourne which remained useful for freight traffic serving the Fairless Works. Today, that remnant remains as a segregated extension of the New York Short Line.

We just had virtually the same discussion over on the NJ Railfan
board in response to an old Skillman station photo (also posted in
this forum)
See http://www.railroad.net/forums/viewtopi ... 26&start=0
We had more or less the same result: 4 tracks from Manville to just
north of Pennington, then 2 tracks south through Pennington.
Not clear about Trenton though.
JS