North Jersey Coast Line

North Jersey Coast Line
ALP-46 #4626 pulls train #3270, an eight-car multilevel train, into the Middletown station.
Overview
Type	Commuter rail line
System	New Jersey Transit
Locale	New Jersey
Termini	New York Penn Station (some peak service from Hoboken Terminal) Bay Head
Stations	28
Daily ridership	17,862
Operation
Owner	Amtrak (New York to Rahway Junction) New Jersey Transit (all other trackage)
Operator(s)	New Jersey Transit
Rolling stock	ALP-46 locomotives F40PH-2CAT locomotives GP40FH-2/GP40PH-2B locomotives Alstom PL42AC Arrow III Comet series Bombardier Multilevel coaches
Technical
Track length	104.6 km (65 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Electrification	11kV 25Hz AC 25 kV 60 Hz AC
Route map Legend Northeast Corridor/LIRR Sunnyside Yard East River Tunnels East River Penn Station New YorkAmtrak Hudson R., N.Y./N.J. border North River Tunnels Hoboken Terminal Hoboken Yard Bergen Tunnels Secaucus Junction Meadows Maintenance Complex Hackensack River Waterfront Connection Kearny Connection New Jersey Turnpike PATH Harrison Passaic River Newark Penn StationAmtrak Newark South Street Raritan Valley Line diverges Lehigh Line Interstate 78 Newark AirportAmtrak AirTrain Newark North Elizabeth Broad St. Elizabeth South Elizabeth Staten Island Railway Linden CSAO Linden Industrial Track North Rahway Rahway Diverging from Northeast Corridor Avenelweekdays only CSAO Port Reading Line Woodbridge New Jersey Turnpike Chemical Coast Line NJ 440 Perth Amboy Running Track Perth Amboy Raritan River Perth Amboy Secondary South Amboy NJ 35 Morgan Creek Laurence Harbor (proposed/canceled) Garden State Parkway Matawan Creek Aberdeen-Matawan Garden State Parkway Hazlet Middletown NWS Earle Track Navesink River Red Bank Monmouth Secondary NJ 35 Little Silver Parkers Creek Oceanport Creek Monmouth Parkseasonal service Branchport Creek NJ 36 Long Branch Long Branch Yard end of electrification Elberon NJ 71 Allenhurst Deal Lake North Asbury Park Asbury Park NJ 33 Bradley Beach Avon Shark River Belmar Spring Lake Sea Girt Manasquan Manasquan River Point Pleasant Beach NJ 35 Bay Head Bay Head Yard

The North Jersey Coast Line is a New Jersey Transit commuter rail service between New York Penn Station or Hoboken Terminal and Bay Head, New Jersey, electrified as far as Long Branch. On rail system maps it is colored light blue, and its symbol is a sailboat.

Most trains operate between New York Penn Station and Long Branch with frequent rush-hour service and hourly local off-peak service. Diesel shuttle trains between Long Branch and Bay Head meet these electric trains. Hourly New York to Long Branch service operates on weekends, with bi-hourly diesel shuttle service (with some extra trains) between Long Branch and Bay Head. Full hourly service operates during the peak summer season.

During weekdays, five round trip diesel trains have run from Bay Head to Hoboken Terminal using the Waterfront Connection since September 9, 1991. Passengers can reach New York via the Northeast Corridor Line at Newark, or PATH at Newark or Hoboken.

Some electric trains terminate at South Amboy or Aberdeen-Matawan and make all stops from New York Penn Station, providing local service for the Northeast Corridor stops of Rahway, Linden, Elizabeth, and North Elizabeth during rush hours.

Physical characteristics

The line is double track except for the bridge over the Manasquan River at Brielle. The line has cab signals and wayside block signals; the line from Rahway to Long Branch is signaled for operation in either direction on both tracks (NORAC Rule 261). Twelve interlockings facilitate flexibility in operation between the two tracks; these and other interlockings control movements to or from freight lines such as the Chemical Coast Secondary, the Perth Amboy Secondary, and the Monmouth Secondary, as well as Long Branch Yard.

Passenger yards are at Long Branch and Bay Head. Long Branch Yard is fully electrified, and mostly interlocked. Bay Head contains a large balloon (circular looping) track where entire trains can reverse direction without backing up or uncoupling the locomotive, and obviating the need for a turntable. It remains in service, even though push-pull operation has eliminated the need for turning of trains. Bay Head Yard has no interlocking; all switches are hand-operated. A yard and sidings formerly existed at South Amboy, dating back to when electrification ended there, but have been removed; trains terminating at South Amboy can be bypassed by using the other track, as the new station has a single island platform.

Movable bridges

The North Jersey Coast Line has five movable bridges of the twelve used by the NJT rail network, the most on any one line. River Draw is a swing bridge at Raritan Bay. Other draw spans cross the Cheesequake or Morgan Creek (bascule), Oceanport over the Shrewsbury River (swing, with non-movable catenary), Shark River (bascule) and Manasquan River (bascule). All these bridges are double-track spans, but the Manasquan bridge has been single-tracked since the mid-1970s. The line also crosses over several other waterways on fixed bridges, the longest of which is over the Navesink River at Red Bank.

Electrification

The North Jersey Coast Line line is electrified north (railroad east) of Long Branch.

Electrified operation between Rahway and South Amboy began about 1936; the catenary poles from the junction in Rahway to South Amboy are the Pennsylvania Railroad design used on their 1930s projects.

Electrification was extended to Matawan in 1982, with catenary installed in the early 1980s. This was originally 11 kV, increased to 12 kV in 1978 along with Amtrak's New York-Washington electrification, with insulators capable of supporting 25 kV.

Electrification at 12.5 kV 60 Hz was extended to Long Branch in 1988, with catenary installed in 1986–88. As on the 1982 extension the insulators can handle 25 kV. The catenary is self-adjusting (constant tensioning) with ambient temperature.

In 2002 the voltage from Matawan to Long Branch was changed from 12.5 kV to 25 kV. As a result the Arrow III passenger cars can no longer run between those two points, since those trains can not run on two different voltages on one trip (the transformer voltage taps must be manually changed from alongside the MU).

The line remains electrified at 12 kV 25 Hz AC north of Matawan. Three phase breaks segregate the different power sources, at the Morgan Creek Drawbridge, Laurel(Hazlet/Holmdel), and east of Bergen Place in Red Bank. As of January 2010, NJ Transit Customer Service says there are no plans to extend the electrification south of Long Branch.

NJCL Traction Infrastructure

Name	Location	Comments
South Amboy Substation	40°29′25″N 74°17′15″W	PRR Sub Number 48; supplied from Amtrak 138 kV 25 Hz network
Morgan (Cheesequake Creek) Drawbridge	40.461611°N 74.2598°W / 40.461611; -74.2598 (Morgan Draw Bridge Phase Break)
Matawan Substation	40.4192°N 74.2154°W / 40.4192; -74.2154 (Matawan Substation)
Matawan Phase Break	40.418°N 74.2100°W / 40.418; -74.2100 (Matawan Phase Break)	Boundary between 12 kV, 25 Hz and 25 kV, 60 Hz
Laurel Avenue Phase Break	40.4047°N 74.1425°W / 40.4047; -74.1425 (Laurel Avenue Phase Break)
Red Bank Substation	40.3446°N 74.0712°W / 40.3446; -74.0712 (Red Bank Substation)
Bergen Place Phase Break	40.3405°N 74.0667°W / 40.3405; -74.0667 (Bergen Place Phase Break)
Long Branch Substation	40.2936°N 73.9888°W / 40.2936; -73.9888 (Long Branch Substation)

Commuter Clubs

The line is also home to the last remaining private commuter passenger Club in the United States. The Jersey Shore Commuters Club was established in 1933 under the auspices of the Pennsylvania Railroad. Currently it has use of half of a Comet IIM car - car #5459. In 2004, the Club Car went through a custom overhaul and was furnished, with the Club's own money, to include reclining lounge chairs, spacious seating, at-seat fold down tables, and private conference tables. The Club also hosts various onboard activities to preserve its heritage. Club members enjoy guaranteed and spacious seating as part of their annual membership fee that the Club remits to New Jersey Transit as part of its lease agreement. Membership is "open" and on a "first come first served basis" to those willing to pay the membership fee and abide by the Club's bylaws. The Club end of the car is furnished similar to Amtrak's Amfleet and Horizon fleet of cars. The Club Car seats are actually former Amfleet Metroliner seats that the Club recently re-conditioned. The Club Car only runs during peak rush hour periods and is always run with the club end coupled to the locomotive when used.

Rolling stock

The Coast Line has among the most diverse selection of fleet in the NJT system.

• Long Branch trains to and from New York use ALP-46 locomotives with Comet series or Multi-Level coaches.

• Arrow III EMUs are sometimes seen on South Amboy and Aberdeen-Matawan locals. Arrow III EMUs can not be used for service south of Aberdeen-Matawan since they are unable to change operating voltages automatically; a manual transformer tap-changer must be adjusted from alongside the MU.

• All service south of Long Branch is diesel, generally utilizing Alstom PL42AC, F40PH-2CAT, or GP40PH-2B locomotives with Comet series coaches.

• Starting Soon NJ Transit will use ALP-45DP Dual Powered Locomotives so the passengers can have a "One Seat Ride" from Bay Head (NJT station) to/from Pennsylvania Station (New York City). They already have the Locomotive and are using it on other line and begin service on the NJCL soon.

Hurricane Sandy

Main article: Effects of Hurricane Sandy in New Jersey

As a line paralleling the New Jersey coastline, the North Jersey Coast Line received exceptionally severe damage from Hurricane Sandy on October 29-30, 2012. Track was washed out in several places from Perth Amboy southward, most notably between South Amboy and Aberdeen-Matawan stations, where the line runs closest to the Atlantic Ocean. The Raritan Bay and Morgan Creek drawbridges were struck by boats, storage containers and other floating debris, knocking the bridges' tracks out of alignment. Trees also fell over parts of the line. Service remained suspended for three weeks; a resumption of service only as far as Woodbridge (and skipping Avenel) on November 4 was halted after only one day due to severe overcrowding. The Christie Administration announced that most North Jersey Coast Line trains would return to service on Monday, November 19, with slightly longer trip times and omission of trains to Hoboken Terminal.

Station listing

See Northeast Corridor Line for stations between New York/Hoboken and Rahway.

Milepost	City	Station	Connections
0	New York City	Penn Station	Eastern terminus for most trains
0	Hoboken	Hoboken Terminal	Limited Service
5	Secaucus	Secaucus Junction	Transfer here for other New Jersey Transit lines (except the Raritan Valley and Gladstone Branch lines)
10	Newark	Newark Penn Station	Transfer here for the Raritan Valley Line, PATH trains and the Newark Light Rail
12.6		Newark Airport	Transfer here for the AirTrain Newark in Newark Airport.
14.4	Elizabeth	North Elizabeth	Limited Service
15.4		Elizabeth
18.6	Linden	Linden
20.7	Rahway	Rahway	NJT Northeast Corridor Line splits, NJT Bus: 62
21	Woodbridge Township	Avenel
22.5		Woodbridge	NJT Bus: 62, 116, 803
21	Perth Amboy	Perth Amboy	NJT Bus: 62, 116, 813, 815, 817
1.5	South Amboy	South Amboy	NJT Bus: 815, 817
6.5	Aberdeen	Aberdeen-Matawan	NJT Bus: 135
8.5	Hazlet	Hazlet
12.5	Middletown	Middletown
16.5	Red Bank	Red Bank	Academy Bus Shore Points line NJT Bus: 831, 832, 833, 834, 835
19	Little Silver	Little Silver
20	Oceanport	Monmouth Park	Seasonal Service
22.5	Long Branch	Long Branch	Academy Bus: Route 36 line NJT Bus: 831, 837
24.5		Elberon
26.5	Allenhurst	Allenhurst	NJT Bus: 837
28	Asbury Park	Asbury Park	Academy Bus: Shore Points line NJT Bus: 317, 830, 832, 836, 837
29	Bradley Beach	Bradley Beach	Academy Bus: Shore Points line NJT Bus: 317, 830
31	Belmar	Belmar	Academy Bus NJT Bus: 317, 830
33	Spring Lake	Spring Lake	Academy Bus: Shore Points line NJT Bus: 317, 830
35	Manasquan	Manasquan	Academy Bus NJT Bus: 317, 830
37	Point Pleasant Beach	Point Pleasant Beach	Academy Bus: Shore Points line NJT Bus: 317, 830
38	Bay Head	Bay Head

Mileage for Rahway, Avenel and Woodbridge is measured from Milepost 1 at Exchange Place, the former PRR terminal in Jersey City, while the mileage for Perth Amboy is measured from the former CNJ Communipaw Terminal in Jersey City. The NJCL mileage resets to 0 at the north end of the Raritan Bay bridge at Perth Amboy; the total distance from where the Coast Line splits off the Northeast Corridor to the Raritan bridge is 6.7 miles.

See also

• New York and Long Branch Railroad
• Perth Amboy and Woodbridge Railroad
• Union Tower
• Essay Tower

External links

• Videos of the passing trains of the North Jersey Coast Line, by Eric K.