Andover Line
Anyone know if the Andover line is going to be done soon?
I just don’t see how this is viable when there was never anyone on the mT olive or h-town stops. Almost 2 hours from h-town to Hoboken. Why not improve existing line performance instead of providing a closer station for maybe 40? people on the outskirts of Andover? Wouldn’t Hackettstown be the more valuable market?
HackaCrack
iJay Trains? Try trains, buses, light rail.... Beyond life support, it needs a another bailout. Ridership fell 98% in the shutdown. Funds have been raided for the past two administrations. Worst equipment in the nation.
The basic service needs support, Federal support, doubt expansion is in the plan. Surprised Htown service is still operating. Too many of our Federal taxes go out if state while our transportation infrastructure crumbles.
Who rides the trains? The people that work to make NJ work.
Strangerdanger Mission Impossible taking the train to NYC from out here.
Better off driving to either Roxbury or Dover.
When I go in on a pleasure trip, I drive to Convent Station and try for an express.
Plenty of parking- cheaper fare-no hassle.
Stymie I heard it’s been pushed back a while as the comments above said there struggling. I do wanna ice tunnel though!
Drew Just seems like a waste of time and money when the existing system is inadequate on routes that are less than 25 minutes to Newark broad. Irvington doesn’t even have rail access.
Hackettstown seems to disprove Andover’s purpose. Make it a rail trail and add hip shops in town with access
Fix what NJ Transit already has to reduce traffic choices instead of helping the small piece of mega commuters. Good working people are delayed on a regular basis. Rant
Lol what a absolute waste of money!!! We cant maintain what we have now why expand the rail system that no one will use. Just dumb.
It's a most complex problem but first, if we keep raiding the budget, get hit by pandemics, we can't maintain what we have much less expand. Constant failures lower ridership more as we continue to circle the drain. NJ Transit is a thorny problem requiring Federal support, a dedicated budget that can't be raided, and a keep your hands off the honeypot focus. First, it is needed. Without it NJ does not work. IF, for example, Hackettstown could get decent service, our economy would benefit as more people would take advantage of our neighborhoods and businesses being able to easily commute by rail. Think we're running about 20%, and that's with a terrible schedule of trains. We have plenty of parking. But how do you manage a business properly when your budgets keep getting stolen to cover other shortfalls. Hard to maintain what we have much less expand when every year you have to reconfigure your spending because you get robbed.
What they should be focusing on is technical advancements that would improve speed like other countries have. If I could get on a train and be in NYC in under 30 minutes I would do it all the time. Obviously post pandemic. In reality that distance ride would take 15 minutes in some European cities. If they ever going to increase ridership they have to be able to compete agains planes and automobiles.
CraftBeerBob According to WAZE- NYC is a 45 mile drive from Hackettstown.
If it takes nearly 2 hours to get there via rail- it’s not a realistic option.
I don’t believe the population density, therefore the ridership, warrants any significant expenditure.
That’s the price for maintaining a country atmosphere out here.
Don’t believe you can have it both ways (IMHO).
Only way feasible is some sort of quasi express train once or twice a morning, maybe Hackettstown, Roxbury, Morristown then-straight on through.
It is in the Landing section of Roxbury and there is a station in Mt.Arlington also.
Mrs.Ward Ridership numbers never supported the service and will never support a quasi express...better and cheaper options available.
NYC will not have office occupancy it once did in the near future or ever.
NJ Transit should cut back on its footprint and improve service where it can.
Here's my "quasi express" train that's easy and cheap to revamp the system from scratch...to recalculate its costs vs. attracting (and serving) more riders from the 'increasing number of suburbanites' who moved away from the city, but still work in the city.
Add an EXPRESS TRAIN from Hackettstown (keeping its local stops) to Dover (maybe adding Denville), to then go straight to just MSU, then skip others to Newark (to lastly end go to Hoboken or NYC Penn).
~With the same express schedule in reverse on the trips back to Hackettstown.
Then again, if there's not enough track to run a train over another (...and they can't learn how the NYC MTA does it), then there's NOTHING "QUASI" to express through its DEFINED train track system :>(
Even if they want to add or extend a track, like the Lackawanna Train Line from PA to NJ/NY, it will take centuries before such extension will finish the "environmental & feasibility" surveys and researchers ...along any approval from the town's people and politicians.
{Otherwise, the best option is to Move closer to where you make $$$ or Move out of this State ---- knowing the whole world, your life should not solely revolve around your town in NJ, forever}
aol123@aol.com I guess you people don't realize the majority of Hackettstown riders go to morris and Essex counties rather than NYC..The actually get more riders out of Hackettstown than Mt Arlington...all the parking soaces in mt arlington are taken by bus passengers
Can't you do this already by changing to an express at Dover? It's still a hour twenty minutes from Dover. Like every 20-30 minutes starting at 4:16 am every weekday morning.... Matter of fact, you can transfer at Dover to an express based on your H-town ticket. Takes over two hours no matter whether you xfer at Dover or Newark Penn Station.
So it's not for everyone. And to be honest, trying to get to the Jersey Gold Coast or any East Jersey points is about two hours too. 2 hours to Hoboken, 2 hours to Basking Ridge, 1 hour to Chatham, 1.5 hours to Short Hills, 2 hours to Newark Penn, 1.5 hours to Newark Broad Street, not a pretty picture. Driving is worse, but you still have to get from the station to your place of work.
Still would like to see some Express from H-town to NYC Penn, even on the weekend. Yet neither the ridership nor the investment money is there to really give it a try. And the fact the trains are in disrepair, schedules are adjusted for breakage all the time, none of this helps a broken system. It needs resuscitation and some dedicated budget to even have a glimmer of a chance.
Based upon the new paradigm of working from home, many folks would only commute 1-2 days per week who live this far out.
Most h-town riders seems to go to Dover or mo-town. Which makes sense to me. I would too if I worked there
That fits my case perfectly that they already have an express train schedule :>)
So it can't be so difficult nor cost the NJTransit to much to give my (real) express schedule that suggests to CUT THOSE STOPS after DOVER to go down straight to Newark before it increases the ridership from those in these far west areas.
Of course since that's too extreme for them to consider, I also suggested (even further add) a few stops along the way like: Denville, MSU, Watchung, & Bay Street, to add its worth financially to have them give it a try.
https://d2g63oyneaimm8.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/2020-11/R0030.pdf
Also knowing Dover is a huge train Hub, they can always send a train down the line to scoop up the unhappy riders (or $ the NJTransit is missing) who are skipped out from my (real) express train.
Nevertheless, such a (real) express train like that will save at least a half an hour to 45 minutes off everyone's commute from Hackettstown thru Dover --- That will increase ridership.
Otherwise, then WHAT have they EVER DONE to INCREASE ridership over the LAST DECADES????
The Mount Arlington Station is a popular place to catch the train. The bus commuters do take up a lot of the parking. Pre Covid the lot used to fill up early in the morning. There is nothing on the other side of the tracks. NJ Transit should build another parking lot there to encourage ridership.
The Andover section of the Lackawanna Cutoff is planned to be reopened by NJ Transit. There were several issues of property ownership and drainage problems along the right of way. The Roseville tunnel near Andover will need extensive repair and have stabilization done. This project has been delayed far too long.
Does anyone know where to purchase tickets for the train leaving Hackettstown to NY. Can you purchase them once on the train?
sue ACKERMAN NJ Transit app with QR code or the self serve kiosk at the station for a paper ticket. I think it’s cash only and extra on the train... discouraged or not permitted
The NJ Transit railroad line depends on construction contracts being funded and approved by government agencies At this point in time that railroad line might see trains by 2028 .
You can take Hackettstown to Dover...then take a midtown direct...Hackettstown goes as far as Hoboken...they have ticket machines in Hackettstown so it is now extra to buy tickets on the train
If the infrastructure bill passes, the Lackawanna cutoff will be restored/reopened. The goal is Amtrak service to Scranton.
Harry I get wanting to add more business between west jersey and pa but honestly hackettstown train line literally has issues on weekends. I don’t even see it run to summit or penn station on weekends. Parentals live summit. And summit is a big hub into the city and even to the Gladstone line. I think nj transit should expand its travel across first as far as more train times before finishing Andover. So u build Andover does that mean itll be like it is in hackettstown? Love that hackettstown has access to the other areas of course but it’s very limited. They should make it more frequent first.
Shannon Sullivan "If the infrastructure bill passes, the Lackawanna cutoff will be restored/reopened."
If the rail line can't earn enough money to pay for itself with the new route, why should the rest of the country have to chip in on something that will never benefit them?
Mark Mc. You could say rhe same thing about many government projects
I am really curious how amtrack plans to run a diesel locomotive into NYC ( scranton to dover)
I know NJ transit can only run tovhoboken with diesels..have to switch in dover for electric train into NYC
Outside of the NE Corridor, Amtrak doesn't make money or break even Mark Mc. Pandemic aside, Acela is the only line that pays for itself. So we already chip in for everything.
MeisterNJ I’m sorry but most of this is ridiculous. Even hackettstown has no regular ridership.
Better money spent improving core nj transit lines and if you do go to Scranton, what’s the point in stopping in Blair’s town??? Could nyc to Scranton to Chicago be faster than existing? A rapid train nyc to Scranton maybe to get Scranton off life support. Just my opinion, and I love traveling by train
$11.1 billion is being spent to connect the Long Island Railroad to Grand Central Station in New York City. You complain about the cost of restoration of service on the Lackawanna Cutoff? What benefit do local commuters get from the Grand Central Station project. The Northeast Corridor tunnels under the Hudson River are in dire need of repair and replacement. New Jersey. needs rail transportation funding too.
@Zipp, You really can't compare the connection+ridership in the LIRR->Grand Central line to that in the Lackawanna line->Hoboken or PennStation.
How many commuters take the LIRR from Montauk to Grand Central?
Also Long Island throughout to NYC is on bedrock - NOT so going throughout Scranton to Hoboken, just to say the "$11.1 billion is being spent to connect the Long Island Railroad" would cost X times much more to build, with Y times much less money back from the people/riders/commuters who will use it....
...to help pay the city/TAXPAYERS who need to cover the debt it will incur in its first decade or 2 (if ever), before it's affordable (commutable) to live much further (expanding that line) out of the Diesel/Electric lines the state already set.
Therefore until NJTransit learns (decides to spend any additional funding) how to improve service (ie: add an express line) from Hackettstown to NYC, spending money on any other PA to NYC Lackawanna (via throw more money to Amtrak) is another kick into New Jerseyan's stomach (+Tax-bill pockets).
If for these more removed communities, they would find a way to schedule more express (type) of trains they could significantly increase ridership.
The time it take to get further east from Hackettstown removes it a viable option for most commuters.
If part of the equation is to remove cars from the road (lessening wear and tear on the roads and improving air quality) isn’t there a way of improving travel times?
aol123. The Lackawanna cutoff is intact without any major construction or tunnel drilling issues.There might be some issues from towns along the right of way about noise.I can assure you the resumption of rail service is long overdue and proceeding slowly but surely. NJT would not have set these rails in place without permission to move forward approved. After the Andover section is placed in service there will be 21 more miles to complete the line to Pennsylvania. Like any other project it might take years to generate enough revenue to support the rail service.Having the rail line operating and providing service is a good start.
Leave a Reply
To comment on this topic, fill out the form below. If you would like to comment directly to one person, you may click on the envelope next to the posters name if they provided their email.