The Port Jervis Line is a predominantly single-track

commuter rail Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...

line running between

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

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 * '' ...

. At Suffern, the line continues south into

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit, and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey, along with portions of New York State and Pennsylvania. It operates bu ...

's Main Line. The line is operated by

NJ Transit Rail Operations NJ Transit Rail Operations is the rail division of NJ Transit. It operates commuter rail service in New Jersey, with most service centered on transportation to and from New York City, Hoboken, and Newark. NJ Transit also operates rail service ...

under a working agreement with

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 public authority of the U.S. state of New York and under contract with the Connectic ...

(MNRR).

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...

(NS) shares the use of the track for local freight operations between Suffern and Port Jervis. The

New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway The New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway (or New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad and also known as the Susie-Q or the Susquehanna) is a Class II American freight railway operating over 400 miles (645 km) of track in t ...

operates over the line between Hudson Junction (east of Campbell Hall) and Port Jervis, and onward to

Binghamton Binghamton () is a City (New York), city in the United States, U.S. state of New York (state), New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County, New York, Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier reg ...

over the former

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake ...

Delaware Division (now the Central New York Railroad). The tracks have been owned by NS since the 1999 split of

Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do bus ...

, but were built by the Erie and incorporated into Conrail on its formation on April 1, 1976. Metro-North leased the entire line from NS in 2003, with the possibility of outright purchase after 2006. Since 2003, MNRR immediately began a substantial track and signal improvement program in order to provide a more reliable and comfortable service, for $183 million. The line runs through some of the most remote and rural country found on the Metro-North system, and includes both its longest bridge, the

Moodna Viaduct The Moodna Viaduct is an iron railroad trestle spanning Moodna Creek and its valley at the north end of Schunemunk Mountain in Cornwall, New York, near the village of Salisbury Mills. Significance The bridge was constructed between 1906 and 19 ...

, and longest tunnel, the

Otisville Tunnel The Otisville Tunnel is the longest tunnel on New York's Metro-North commuter railroad, at in length. Although the track curves at the western opening, underground the tunnel is a straight line, allowing the observer to see all the way through. ...

History

Erie Railroad use

The portions of the line from

New York and Erie Rail Road The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake Erie ...

, opening to Port Jervis in 1848. The route south of Suffern is slightly younger (connected for through service in 1853); the original mainline ran east from Suffern to Piermont. The portion from Harriman to Otisville was built in 1906–1909 as a low-level freight bypass named the Graham Line. This portion of the line bypasses the original Erie mainline through Monroe,

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

, Goshen and Middletown. The line, along with the Main Line through Paterson, served as a segment of the

's long-distance flagship trains to points west such as

, New York State's

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 ...

, Buffalo and

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, on daily routes such as the day train, 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 ...

''. Additional through trains to Chicago were the ''

Pacific Express Pacific Express was an all-jet airline in the western United States from 1982 to early based in marketed itself as Pan Am Pacific Express reflecting a marketing agreement between Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) and the carrier for connectin ...

,'' and its east-bound counterpart, the ''Atlantic Express.'' The '' Lake Cities'' and the ''Atlantic Express''/''Pacific Express'' were night-time departures. The ''Erie Limited'' was discontinued in 1963. Other routes west were eliminated throughout the course of the 1960s. The last train west of Port Jervis, #21/#22, a daily train to Binghamton, had its final run on November 27, 1966.

MTA/NJ Transit use

On November 14, 1973, the

Metropolitan Transportation Authority The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the New York City metropolitan area of the U.S. state of New York. The MTA is the largest public transit authority in th ...

agreed to

subsidize A subsidy or government incentive is a form of financial aid or support extended to an economic sector (business, or individual) generally with the aim of promoting economic and social policy. Although commonly extended from the government, the ter ...

existing

Erie Lackawanna Railway The Erie Lackawanna Railway , known as the Erie Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. The official motto of the line was "The Friendly Service Route" ...

service on the Port Jervis line, which became part of

on April 1, 1976. New Jersey Transit subsidized the service within New Jersey. The MTA was only responsible for paying for Conrail's operation and maintenance of the line and stations. A federal statute, the Northeast Rail Services Act of 1981, was passed, relieving Conrail of its obligation to operate commuter rail service for local and state transportation agencies after December 31, 1982. To ensure that service was not terminated, the MTA created a wholly-owned subsidiary, the Metro-North Commuter Railroad. On January 1, 1983, Metro-North took over the commuter operations of Conrail in the state of New York, and New Jersey Transit Rail Operations took over the commuter operations of Conrail in New Jersey. This included service west of the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between Ne ...

, where rail lines do not connect directly with New York City. These lines pass through New Jersey, stopping at

Secaucus Junction Secaucus Junction (known as Secaucus Transfer during planning stages and signed simply as Secaucus) is a NJ Transit Rail Operations commuter rail hub in Secaucus, New Jersey. The $450 million, station opened on December 15, 2003, and was ded ...

, where New Jersey Transit trains provide service to New York Penn Station multiple times per hour, and terminating at

Hoboken Terminal Hoboken Terminal is a commuter-oriented intermodal passenger station in Hoboken, Hudson County, New Jersey. One of the New York metropolitan area's major transportation hubs, it is served by nine NJ Transit (NJT) commuter rail lines, one Metr ...

. The MTA initially equipped the lines with second-hand equipment. In 1984, the Main Line between Harriman and Middletown was abandoned, and service was moved to the longer (by 6 miles) Graham Line, the Erie's freight cutoff. Officially, the first day of regular service on the Graham Line was April 18, 1983. Since this was the first passenger service on the Graham line, new stations were built, but without facilities in order to minimize costs. At the time this was a very unpopular move with commuters, who were used to having their trains stop right in the center of their towns. However, the MTA cited that it was responding to pressure by the towns to have the service moved out of the populated areas due to "traffic concerns" caused by the closures of the grade crossings. The Graham Line passed through no populated areas, and driving to the new stations was an additional time cost for many commuters. However, others wanted trains out of the center of the towns, and so the switch was made. The old mainline was no longer used for freight, so following the move to the Graham line, it was abandoned. The line from Harriman to Middletown is now the Orange County Heritage Trail. In the mid-1990s, as Orange County started to become a popular place for commuters, political pressure caused the MTA to start improving service, building a new station in Middletown-Town of Wallkill, expanding parking at Harriman, and other improvements. In the 2000s, growth in Orange County accelerated, so the MTA added more service, and started to expand parking lots, which became paid lots in line with the rest of the Metro-North system. In spring 1997, the Norfolk Southern Corporation (NS) and the CSX Corporation agreed to acquire Conrail, and the acquisition was approved on July 23, 1998, and implemented in 1999. As part of the transaction, the Port Jervis Line went under the control of NS. Metro-North leased the entire line from Norfolk Southern on April 1, 2003, for 49 years, with the possibility of outright purchase in 2006. Also in 2003, Secaucus Junction station opened, reducing travel time to Midtown. One oddity that results from the unusual arrangement between the MTA and NJ Transit is that, although the MTA subsidizes the service and maintains all of the facilities (except for the Suffern station), the actual operation of the line is almost totally under the control of NJ Transit–the trains are operated by NJT personnel; the trains are dispatched from

Hoboken Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,69 ...

and the ticket vending machines on station platforms are NJT machines, not Metro-North's. The fare system is a combination of NJT and Metro-North policies.

Hurricane Irene

Port Jervis Line tracks damaged by flooding, Sloatsburg, NY

Service north of Suffern was suspended due to severe damage from Hurricane Irene on August 28, 2011. 14 miles of the line were damaged. The roadbed was washed away, signal cables were exposed or went underwater, bridge structures were exposed, the right of way along the Ramapo River eroded and track was damaged. Shuttle train service between Harriman and Port Jervis started in September, and full train service resumed on November 28, 2011: one month earlier than anticipated. PortJervisWashoutIrene

Future expansion

In 2008, Metro-North and the

Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ, is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate compact authorize ...

(PANYNJ) began a joint feasibility study of a possible branch from the line to

Stewart International Airport Stewart International Airport, officially New York Stewart International Airport , is a public/military airport in Orange County, New York, United States. It is in the southern Hudson Valley, west of Newburgh, south of Kingston, and southwest ...

, which the Port Authority had taken over the year before, ending a seven-year

privatization Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...

experiment. The PANYNJ withdrew from the study after its first phase, having decided that express bus service could meet the same needs much more cheaply. Metro-North is continuing the study on its own. Future improvements for the line include the completion of the cab-signaling system and the construction of a yard near Salisbury Mills to relieve pressure on the Suffern yard. In a 2013 report, the MTA revealed that planning was underway for installing a second track between

Sloatsburg Sloatsburg is a village in the town of Ramapo in Rockland County, New York, United States. Located east of Orange County, it is at the southern entrance to Harriman State Park. The population was 3,039 at the 2010 census. The village is name ...

and the

, and for the construction of a midway yard on the line. $83 million has been allocated in the 2015–2019 MTA Capital Program to keep the Port Jervis Branch in a State of Good Repair. This money will be allocated to repairing the Moodna and Woodbury Viaducts, station improvements, replacing or rehabilitating under-grade bridges, track improvements and capacity improvements. The MTA's 20 Year Needs Report includes the installation of Positive Train Control; the continued rehabilitation and replacement of under-grade bridges and

culverts A culvert is a structure that channels water past an obstacle or to a subterranean waterway. Typically embedded so as to be surrounded by soil, a culvert may be made from a pipe, reinforced concrete or other material. In the United Kingdo ...

; the replacement of the diesel fleet; and the replacement of the Woodbury and Moodna Viaducts. In 2017, Metro-North started its West of Hudson Regional Transit Access Study to evaluate possible improvements in the Port Jervis Line service. An open-house presentation took place on February 15, 2017. $150 million in improvements will be made from 2017 to 2023. As part of the study, three possible sites for a midpoint yard were evaluated: Harriman, Salisbury Mills, Campbell Hall. The Campbell Hall site was chosen as it has the least potential to block the line if a train breaks down; because of its lower cost; and because it advances an operating plan to have inner service on the line run from Middletown. In addition, three passing sidings would be added near the Tuxedo, Salisbury Mills and Middletown stations. The sidings and the yard would allow for increased service on the line, from the current 27 trains a day to as many as 44. Trains between Port Jervis and Middletown would be increased by one to 26; trains between Middletown and Campbell Hall would be increased from 27 to 37, and trains between Campbell Hall to Hoboken would be increased to 44. The midpoint yard and passing sidings would be open in 2023. The passing sidings would all be at least two miles (3.2 km) long, bringing the line closer to the railroad's eventual goal of double-tracking all of it. While they can be built within the railroad's existing

right-of-way Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another. A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...

, the midpoint yard—estimated to be —would require the purchase of additional land. When complete it could hold as many as nine additional trains.

Description

Port Jervis Line trains start at

and then stop at

to take passengers connecting from

New York Penn Station Pennsylvania Station, also known as New York Penn Station or simply Penn Station, is the main intercity railroad station in New York City and the busiest transportation facility in the Western Hemisphere, serving more than 600,000 passengers ...

. Most of the Port Jervis Line trains then travel to New York State at

Suffern Suffern is a village that was incorporated in 1796 in the town of Ramapo in Rockland County, New York. Suffern is located 31 miles northwest of Manhattan. As of the 2010 census, Suffern's population was 10,723.Ramsey Route 17 station Ramsey Route 17 is one of two railroad stations operated by New Jersey Transit in the borough of Ramsey, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. Named after nearby Route 17, trains at the station are serviced by the Main Line and Be ...

. Those can be routed via either the Main Line or

Bergen County Line The Bergen County Line is a commuter rail line and service owned and operated by New Jersey Transit in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The line loops off the Main Line between the Meadowlands and Glen Rock, with trains continuing in either dir ...

between Secaucus and Ridgewood. On weekends, most Port Jervis trains run local, making all stops on either line. From Suffern, the line follows the same narrow valley as the

New York State Thruway , direction_a = South , terminus_a = {{Jct, state=NY, I, 95 at the The Bronx, Bronx–Yonkers, New York City line , junction = {{plainlist, * {{jct, state=NY, I, 287, Parkway, Saw Mill, NY, 119 in Elmsford, New York, Elmsford * {{jct, state=NY, ...

and NY 17. The stations at

and

Tuxedo Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal element ...

are very close to 17 and, while Harriman also has its entrance on 17, its actual platform is farther back, adjacent to the Thruway. Harriman is the busiest station on the line. One peak hour train in each direction runs nonstop between Secaucus and Harriman. The Tuxedo station is the only stop on the line with the original (1883) passenger station building. Moodna Viaduct

After crossing under the on-ramp from 17 to the Thruway and passing

Woodbury Commons Woodbury Common Premium Outlets is an outlet center located in Central Valley, New York. The center is owned by Premium Outlets, a subsidiary of Simon Property Group, and takes its name from the town in which it is located. Opened in late 1985, ...

, the line gradually moves away from the Thruway, crossing

NY 32 New York State Route 32 (NY 32) is a north–south state highway that extends for through the Hudson Valley and Capital District regions of the U.S. state of New York. It is a two-lane surface road for nearly its entire length, with ...

and running along the shoulder of Schunemunk Mountain, where it twice is crossed by hiking

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. ...

s. At Schunemunk's north end, it curves along to the

: the highest and longest railroad trestle east of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...

. Immediately afterward, it crosses NY 94 and arrives at Salisbury Mills-Cornwall in the Town of Cornwall. The westward curve accelerates afterward and the line begins to run almost east–west across central Orange County. Campbell Hall station services the towns of Goshen, Montgomery and

Walden ''Walden'' (; first published in 1854 as ''Walden; or, Life in the Woods'') is a book by American transcendentalist writer Henry David Thoreau. The text is a reflection upon the author's simple living in natural surroundings. The work is part ...

. The track crosses the

Wallkill River The Wallkill River, a tributary of the Hudson, drains Lake Mohawk in Sparta, New Jersey, flowing from there generally northeasterly U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed Oct ...

, then Interstate 84, to run parallel to

NY 211 New York State Route 211 (NY 211) is a state highway located entirely within Orange County, New York, in the United States. The western terminus is at the intersection with US 209 located in Cuddebackville, and the eastern terminu ...

near Highland Lakes State Park for a while. Shortly after leaving the highway's side, trains arrive at Middletown near the popular Galleria at Crystal Run shopping mall. Almost unnoticed from the highway, the line crosses under the Route 17 expressway (the future Interstate 86) after leaving Middletown. A second track begins at Howells, to accommodate trains waiting for others to clear the

. The siding rejoins the mainline just after the Otisville station, as trains enter a mile-long (1.6 km) tunnel under the

Shawangunk Ridge The Shawangunk Ridge , also known as the Shawangunk Mountains or The Gunks, is a ridge of bedrock in Ulster County, Sullivan County and Orange County in the state of New York, extending from the northernmost point of the border with New Jerse ...

: the longest on Metro-North. Once on the western end, in some of the most undeveloped countryside Metro-North passes through, trains make a long descent of the west side of

, parallel to the

Neversink River The Neversink River (also called Neversink Creek in its upper course) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in southeastern Ne ...

valley southwards, reaching valley level just before the terminal station Port Jervis and the yard beyond.

Stations

Rolling stock

All trains on the Port Jervis Line are push-pulled by diesel locomotives, with locomotives normally facing west. Most of the equipment used on the line is owned by NJ Transit, while some coaches and locomotives are owned by Metro-North. The locomotives used on the line range from GP40PH-2Bs, F40PH-3Cs, PL42ACs and GP40FH-2Ms, with the occasional ALP-45DP. A total of fifteen locomotives are in Metro-North colors. Coach cars on the line are all Comet V's both owned by Metro-North and NJ Transit. In July 2018, Metro-North Rail Commuter Council Vice-chairman Orrin Getz announced the agency's intention to purchase 15 new Siemens Charger SC-44 locomotives to replace the current locomotive fleet for the Port Jervis Line.

Bibliography

* *

References

External links

The Port Jervis Line
at piercehaviland.org

at mta.info {{Metro-North Metro-North Railroad NJ Transit Rail Operations Erie Railroad Transportation in Orange County, New York Rail infrastructure in New Jersey Erie Railroad lines