Passaic–Bergen Rail Line

The Passaic-Bergen Passenger Rail Project is a project by New Jersey Transit (NJT) to reintroduce passenger service on a portion of the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway (NYSW) right-of-way in Passaic and Bergen counties.[1][2][3] Plans call for service to run from Hawthorne south to Paterson, then east to Hackensack using newly built, FRA-compliant diesel multiple unit rail cars.[4][5]

Hawthorne station would be the terminus and serve as a transfer to the Main Line.

Calls for restoration of service began in the early 2000s.[6]When announced in the mid-2000s NJT stated construction could begin in early 2009 and last approximately 3 years and estimated the cost of the project to be $156 million.[4] In a memorandum of understanding NJT agreed to pay NYSW more than $20 million for a 75-year easement for trackage rights on its freight line.[5]

In October 2015, U.S. Congressman Bill Pascrell joined state legislators in creating a coalition to revive the project,[7] and in January 2016, the local governments of the involved municipalities passed concurrent resolutions to restart the project.[8] In August 2017 NJT released an RFP to examine current conditions on the line and needs of communities it would serve.[9][10] The new study called the Passaic–Bergen–Hudson Transit Project, expected to have been completed in 2019, and will also review the possibility of connecting to the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail.[11]

NJ Midland and NYS&W
ROW through Hackensack

The ROW was originally developed by the New Jersey Midland Railway in 1872.[12] The NYS&W ran passenger service until June 30, 1966.[13] The line terminated at Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City until 1961, and until 1966 at Susquehanna Transfer in North Bergen, which had opened on August 1, 1939 to allow transfer to buses through the Lincoln Tunnel.[14] NYSW freight operations terminate at the Landbridge Terminal south of the North Bergen Yard near Secaucus Road.[15] While outside of the scope of the project the railroad and the city of Hackensack replaced a rail trestle to the east of the proposed terminus with a contingency for a future additional track and passenger platform.[16]

Route
Passaic-Bergen Rail Line
MAIN to Suffern
NYS&W Main Line
 Hawthorne
MAIN to Hoboken Terminal
 6th Avenue
 Lafayette Street
 Madison Avenue
 20th Avenue
 Vreeland Avenue
 Boulevard
Bergen County Line
 American Legion Drive
Pascack Valley Line
 State Street
NYS&W Main Line

The line would run for approximate 8.3 miles in a generally east-west alignment, creating a cross-county corridor running between Hawthorne, where transfer to the Main Line would be available, and Hackensack, about two blocks from the Hackensack Bus Terminal. There would be five stations in Paterson, one station in Elmwood Park, New Jersey, and an additional station in Hackensack. It would also cross Saddle Brook, Rochelle Park and Maywood, but would not have any station stops in them.[1]

Proposed stations

See also

References
  1. "NJ Transit design and engineering services for the Passaic-Bergen Passenger restoration project". Systra Consulting. Archived from the original on February 3, 2013. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
  2. Freemark, Yonah (May 14, 2009). "Making Links in North Jersey". The Transport Politic. Retrieved May 16, 2014.
  3. http://www.stpaulscdcnj.org/downloads/Passaic-Bergen%20Rail%20Map.pdf
  4. "Passaic-Bergen Rail Plan Advances" (Press release). New Jersey Transit. April 1, 2007. Retrieved May 21, 2005.
  5. "NorthJersey.com: NJ Transit to expand passenger train service". May 19, 2009. Archived from the original on May 19, 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2016.
  6. Hanley, Robert (July 10, 2001). "Bergen Officials Call for Ambitious Rail Service Expansion". The New York Times. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  7. Higgs, Larry (October 30, 2015). "Coalition to revive Passaic, Bergen, Hudson light rail plan". NJ.com. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
  8. "Municipalities Pass Resolutions Supporting Passaic-Bergen Rail Project" (Press release). Passaic County. January 15, 2016. Archived from the original on June 29, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2016.
  9. Kofsky, Jared (August 10, 2017). "NJ TRANSIT Reactivates Proposal for Rail Service Between Hawthorne, Paterson, and Hackensack". jerseydigs.com.
  10. "NJ Transit Procurement Calendar". New Jersey Transit. Retrieved December 5, 2017.
  11. "Passaic Bergen Hudson Transit Project". Projects & Reports. NJ Transit. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  12. "Maywood Railroad Station" (PDF). National Park Service. April 6, 2003. Retrieved September 12, 2016.
  13. Mohowski, Robert E. (2003). The New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad. Baltimore: JHU Press. p. 175. ISBN 9780801872228.
  14. Kaminski, Edward S. (2010), New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad in New Jersey, Arcadia Publishing, ISBN 978-0-7385-7367-0
  15. "NYSW in North Bergen". New York Susquehanna and Western. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
  16. Boswell Engineering. "River Street Rail Trestle" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 30, 2013.
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