Suffern
Suffern is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village that was incorporated in 1796 in the town of Ramapo, New York, Ramapo in Rockland County, New York. Suffern is located 31 miles northwest of Manhattan. As of the 2010 census, Suf ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
to Hoboken, New Jersey, in the United States. It runs daily commuter service and was once the north–south main line of the Erie Railroad. It is colored yellow on NJ Transit system maps, and its symbol is a water wheel.
The Bergen County Line splits off the Main Line just west of the Secaucus Junction transfer station and rejoins it at
Ridgewood Ridgewood may refer to:
Geography Australia
*Ridgewood, Western Australia
Canada
* Ridgewood, Ontario
*Ridgewood, Edmonton, Alberta
United Kingdom
*Ridgewood, East Sussex
United States
*Ridgewood Heights, California
* Ridgewood, Illinois
*Ridge ...
. Trains on both lines are push-pull, powered by diesel locomotives (ordinarily on the west end of the train).
Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Chicago via Binghamton and
Jamestown, New York
Jamestown is a city in southern Chautauqua County, in the U.S. state of New York. The population was 28,712 at the 2020 census. Situated between Lake Erie to the north and the Allegheny National Forest to the south, Jamestown is the largest pop ...
Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan (also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York) is the southernmost part of Manhattan, the central borough for business, culture, and government in New York City, which is the most populated city in the United States with ...
.
The Erie Railroad's major long-distance passenger trains to Chicago, the ''
Atlantic Express and Pacific Express
The ''Atlantic Express'' and ''Pacific Express'' were a pair of Erie Railroad passenger trains which together provided round-trip service between the New York City area and Chicago, Illinois. They were the Erie's oldest named passenger trains, ha ...
,'' the ''
Erie Limited
The ''Erie Limited'' was a streamlined passenger train operated by the Erie Railroad between Jersey City, New Jersey (for New York City) and Chicago, Illinois via the Southern Tier. It operated from 1929 to 1963. After the merger of the Erie ...
'', and the '' Lake Cities,'' ran along this section, through Passaic,
Paterson Paterson may refer to:
People
* Paterson (surname)
* Paterson (given name)
Places
Australia
*Paterson, New South Wales
*Paterson River, New South Wales
* Division of Paterson, an electoral district in New South Wales
*Paterson, Queensland, a lo ...
Southern Tier
The Southern Tier is a geographic subregion of the broader Upstate New York region of New York State, consisting of counties west of the Catskill Mountains in Delaware County and geographically situated along or very near the northern border ...
, Jamestown, and west to Chicago. The final long-distance train along this route was the ''Atlantic Express and Pacific Express'' in 1965.
In 1963, the Erie Main Line south of
Paterson Paterson may refer to:
People
* Paterson (surname)
* Paterson (given name)
Places
Australia
*Paterson, New South Wales
*Paterson River, New South Wales
* Division of Paterson, an electoral district in New South Wales
*Paterson, Queensland, a lo ...
to its connection with the Bergen County Line at Carlton Hill in Rutherford was abandoned and service began using the former LackawannaBoonton Branch south of Paterson via the Lyndhurst Draw and Upper Hack Lift bridges as the route through downtown Passaic was abandoned. Boonton Line service began using the Erie's Greenwood Lake division up to its junction the Lackawanna Boonton Branch at Mountain View in Wayne as the Lackawanna right-of-way in Paterson was used for the construction of
Interstate 80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
. The Erie Jersey City terminal was abandoned circa 1959 after all Erie service had moved to the Lackawanna Hoboken Terminal.
Service under Erie Lackawanna introduced new GE U34CH diesels and Comet I cars in 1970 which lasted under NJ DOT and Conrail into the NJ Transit era. Metro-North took over service north of Suffern in 1983. Effective April 18, 1983,
Metro-North Railroad
Metro-North Railroad , trading as MTA Metro-North Railroad, is a suburban commuter rail service run by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), a New York State public benefit corporations, public authority of the U.S. state of New Yor ...
Graham Line
The Graham Line (also known as the Guymard Cutoff) is the portion of the former Erie Railroad in New York State from Highland Mills (at about ) to Guymard (at about ), constructed from 1906 to 1909 as a high-speed freight line. The Graham Line byp ...
, thus ending the direct passenger route from Harriman through Monroe and Goshen to Middletown. Service was increased along with the opening of the Secaucus Transfer station in late 2003.
1996 Secaucus collision
On February 9, 1996, a Main Line train was involved in a collision with a Bergen County Line train in Secaucus.
Service
Departing the historic 1907-built Hoboken Terminal, the yards for the coaches to the left, trains pass over two city streets and the Hudson Bergen Light Rail before entering the
Bergen Tunnels
The Bergen Tunnels are a pair of railroad tunnels with open cuts running parallel to each other under Bergen Hill in Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S. Originally built by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W), they are used by New Je ...
under the Bergen Hill section of Hudson Palisades. Midway through the tunnel there are air shafts allowing light through and venting out the diesel fumes. Exiting the tunnel, the train curves right onto the Main Line at West End interlocking in
Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.New Jersey Turnpike
The New Jersey Turnpike (NJTP) is a system of controlled-access highways in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The turnpike is maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA).The Garden State Parkway, although maintained by NJTA, is not consi ...
Gladstone Branch
The Gladstone Branch (also known as the Gladstone Line) is a commuter rail line operated by NJ Transit from Gladstone station, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, to either Hoboken Terminal or New York Penn Station. It is one of two branches of th ...
, and the Montclair-Boonton Line on the upper level.
The Main Line then runs through an industrial section of Secaucus. Shortly afterwards the Bergen County Line curves right on its new connection to the Erie alignment. The Main Line then crosses over the Hackensack River on the single-track Upper Hack Lift bridge, built in 1958.
Double track resumes under the
New Jersey Turnpike
The New Jersey Turnpike (NJTP) is a system of controlled-access highways in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The turnpike is maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA).The Garden State Parkway, although maintained by NJTA, is not consi ...
's western spur after 0.4 mile of single track. The train continues through the Meadowlands and passes the first grade crossing at Valley Brook Avenue in Lyndhurst. The line curves slightly and passes through the 1903 Kingsland tunnel. Kingsland station is shortly after the tunnel in an open cut. Just beyond Kingsland station is Lyndhurst station, on an embankment.
After Lyndhurst the train crosses the
Passaic River
Passaic River ( ) is a river, approximately long, in Northern New Jersey. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburban northern New Jersey, ...
on a swing bridge that has been bolted shut (although it is technically required by Federal regulation to be opened on 24 hours notice). The train passes under Route 3 and approaches Delawanna station.
Next stop is Passaic, on an embankment. After Passaic, the Main Line has a stretch through some industrial areas before the
Clifton
Clifton may refer to:
People
*Clifton (surname)
*Clifton (given name)
Places
Australia
* Clifton, Queensland, a town
**Shire of Clifton
*Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong
*Clifton, Western Australia
Canada
*Clifton, Nova Scotia ...
station
Station may refer to:
Agriculture
* Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production
* Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle
** Cattle statio ...
, also on an embankment.
The Main Line passes under U.S. Route 46 and the Garden State Parkway before it crosses under and over several streets in south
Paterson Paterson may refer to:
People
* Paterson (surname)
* Paterson (given name)
Places
Australia
*Paterson, New South Wales
*Paterson River, New South Wales
* Division of Paterson, an electoral district in New South Wales
*Paterson, Queensland, a lo ...
. It leaves the DL&W Boonton Branch alignment at about and reaches the Erie Main Line alignment at . This connection was single track when built circa 1963, then double-tracked in a rehabilitation project in 2002. The line passes under
Interstate 80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one o ...
and heads into downtown Paterson. The Erie station in Paterson is elevated, with a center platform.
Continuing north the Main Line is elevated through Paterson, passing over streets. After several grade crossings in an industrial area, the tracks cross the
Passaic River
Passaic River ( ) is a river, approximately long, in Northern New Jersey. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburban northern New Jersey, ...
on a truss bridge.
Hawthorne
Hawthorne often refers to the American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Hawthorne may also refer to:
Places
Australia
*Hawthorne, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane
Canada
* Hawthorne Village, Ontario, a suburb of Milton, Ontario
United States
* Hawt ...
is the next stop, at grade level. After a long stretch, the train reaches Glen Rock station, at grade level at a crossing.
After Glen Rock the Main Line merges with the Bergen County Line at Ridgewood Junction. The line widens to three tracks (in Erie days the line was four tracks from here to Suffern NY).
Ridgewood Ridgewood may refer to:
Geography Australia
*Ridgewood, Western Australia
Canada
* Ridgewood, Ontario
*Ridgewood, Edmonton, Alberta
United Kingdom
*Ridgewood, East Sussex
United States
*Ridgewood Heights, California
* Ridgewood, Illinois
*Ridge ...
station is next, with Spanish-style design on the station building and with newly constructed high-level platforms.
Next is
Ho-Ho-Kus
Ho-Ho-Kus () is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 4,258, an increase of 180 (+4.4%) from the 2010 census count of 4,078, which in turn reflected an increase ...
, also at grade. Waldwick follows with an abandoned station building on the northbound side and a footbridge connecting the two platforms. Waldwick Yard is just north of the station with the restored WC tower on the southbound side by the yard. Just following Waldwick Yard is a
grade crossing
A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an overpass or tunnel. The term also ...
. North of the grade crossing (which has three tracks) the line becomes two tracks.
Allendale and Ramsey follow, both as grade-level stations. Ramsey-Route 17 station (opened August 22, 2004) is next. It is a park-and-ride facility located off of Route 17 south in Ramsey.
Mahwah follows and is the last station in New Jersey. Crossing over the
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
state line the train arrives at
Suffern
Suffern is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village that was incorporated in 1796 in the town of Ramapo, New York, Ramapo in Rockland County, New York. Suffern is located 31 miles northwest of Manhattan. As of the 2010 census, Suf ...
, the last stop for most trains. Some trains continue via Metro-North's Port Jervis Line to the north end of passenger operations at Port Jervis. The yards are just to the north of the Suffern station, under the
New York State Thruway
{{Infobox road
, state = NY
, type = NYST
, alternate_name = Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway
, maint = NYSTA
, map = {{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, type=line, stroke-width=2, type2=line, from2=New Yor ...
overpass.
Rolling stock
All trains on the Main Line are push-pulled by diesel locomotives. Coaches used are from the Comet series, and often feature Metro-North owned Comet Vs as these are pooled with New Jersey Transit's coaches as part of the operating agreement. Trains running exclusively on NJT trackage may also utilize MultiLevel cars hauled by a PL42AC. More recently, ALP-45DP hauled trains have been used on this line as well. Other equipment used could also include EMDGP40PH-2 or EMDGP40PH-2B locomotives.