Princeton Branch
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Princeton Branch
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 The "Dinky" at Princeton Junction. |
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| Overview | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Type | Commuter rail line | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| System | New Jersey Transit | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Locale | New Jersey | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Termini | Princeton Junction Princeton |
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| Stations | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operation | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | New Jersey Transit | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operator(s) | New Jersey Transit | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rolling stock | Arrow III | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Technical | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Track length | 4.5 km (3 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Princeton Branch is a commuter rail line and service owned and operated by New Jersey Transit in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The line is a short branch of the Northeast Corridor Line, running from Princeton Junction northwest to Princeton with no intermediate stops. Also known as the Dinky Line, or the Princeton Junction and Back (PJ&B),[1] the branch is served by special shuttle trains. Dinky is a term for a small locomotive. The line is today served by a set of two Budd Arrow III self-propelled electric coach cars. The Federal Railroad Administration considers any power car to be a locomotive. One-car sets are sometimes used. NJ Transit has also considered using diesel multiple unit coaches on the line.
The Princeton Branch provides rail service directly to the Princeton University campus from Princeton Junction, where New Jersey Transit and Amtrak trains that go to Newark, New York City, and Philadelphia can be boarded. Peak period trains leave Princeton on weekdays between 5:59 am and 8:14 am, approximately, and leave Princeton Junction on weekdays between 5:03 pm and 8:10 pm, approximately (some trains handle both peak and off-peak commuters to and from the Northeast Corridor).[2] There are 41 departures in each direction daily.
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[edit] History
When the Camden and Amboy Rail Road and Transportation Company opened its original Trenton-New Brunswick line in 1839, the line was located along the east bank of the Delaware and Raritan Canal, about one mile (2 km) from downtown Princeton.[3] The new alignment (now the Northeast Corridor Line) opened in 1863,[4] but some passenger trains continued to use the old line until the Princeton Branch opened on May 29, 1865, using a Grice & Long steam dummy for passenger service.[5]
The Pennsylvania Railroad leased and began to operate the C&A, including the Princeton Branch, in 1871.[6] Penn Central Transportation took over operations in 1968, and, when Conrail was formed in 1976, the line was transferred to the New Jersey Department of Transportation.[7]
The Princeton train, locally called the "Dinky"[8] or the "PJ&B" (for "Princeton Junction and Back"),[9] is a unique symbol of Princeton University that has grown over time to emblemize the University. It is mentioned in F. Scott Fitzgerald's "This Side of Paradise", featured in the TV program "Family Ties" when young Alex P. Keaton goes for his on-campus interview, and it is also in the 1934 Bing Crosby Movie "She Loves Me Not". The theme of Princeton and the train is repeated again in the University's own traditional homecoming song "Going Back to Nassau Hall" by Kenneth S. Clark (1905). In it, the line "We'll clear the track as we go back" refers to the Princeton Branch tracks that stop on campus.
[edit] Plans for the Branch
Princeton University plans a campus expansion at the site of the branch's terminal station[10] that will move the station 460 feet south of its current location.[11] Rail advocates fear that access to the new station would be less convenient, resulting in decreased ridership that would "threaten the train's existence."[12] In 2010 the Princeton Regional Planning Board and New Jersey Transit (NJT) presented plans to convert the train to a Rapid Transit Bus (BRT) that would be part of a larger regional BRT system. In April 2010 a group formed on the social network site, Facebook, called "Save the Princeton Dinky". It has attracted over 6,000 alumni, locals and others in support of keeping the Dinky train. The Princeton Regional Planning Board ultimately passed a resolution supporting the continuation of train service, however on October 4, 2011, by a vote of 3-2, Princeton Borough Council voted to ratify an agreement that permits Princeton University to request that NJTransit cut back the line to the Princeton Borough boundary, and to incorporate the current existing commuter parking lot and terminal building into the university's "Arts and Transit" project. [13].
[edit] The Great Dinky Robbery
The Great Dinky Robbery was a prank perpetrated by four Princeton University students on Friday, May 3, 1963.[14] The Dinky referred to is the Princeton Branch service operated at the time by the Pennsylvania Railroad, usually a one-car train. At the time, Princeton was an all-male school, so the Dinky was the primary means of transportation for women coming to the campus to meet their dates.
In the "Robbery", four students on horseback ambushed the train as it was arriving in the Princeton Junction station. A convertible was parked across the track forcing the Dinky to come to an abrupt halt. At that point, the ersatz cowboys rode up to the Dinky, and, led by George Bunn '63 who was armed with a pistol loaded with blanks, boarded and seized four girls selected on the spot. The riders and their newly-found dates rode off on the horses, the convertible was moved off the tracks, and the Dinky arrived safely, albeit a few minutes late. Although the University administrators were aware of the event and knew who was involved, they took no official action against them.
[edit] Station listing
| Mile Post | Municipality | Station | Oper | Connections |
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| 0.1 | West Windsor | Princeton Junction | NJT/Amtrak | Northeast Corridor NJT/Amtrak lines. |
| 2.8 | Princeton | Princeton | NJT | no connections at this time |
[edit] References
- David McIlroy, Daily Princetonian article, 2004. Accessed 3/20/2006.
- Editorial [2] Princeton Alumni Weekly (April 7, 2004)
- Capi Lynn, 1923 botched train holdup nears anniversary, Statesman Journal, 2003. Accessed 3/21/2006.
- Bleary, H. The Great Dinky Robbery Princeton Alumni Weekly (Dec. 20, 2000)
- Edwards, Selden. The Great Train Robbery[15] Princeton Alumni Weekly (April 7, 2004)
[edit] Notes
- ^ Rosenbaum, Joel; Tom Gallo (1997). NJ Transit Rail Operations. Railpace Newsmagazine. http://www.railpace.com/store/njt_book.htm.
- ^ Timetable
- ^ PRR Chronology, 1839PDF (82.7 KiB), June 2004 Edition
- ^ PRR Chronology, 1863PDF (140 KiB), June 2004 Edition
- ^ PRR Chronology, 1865PDF (110 KiB), June 2004 Edition
- ^ PRR Chronology, 1871PDF (72.9 KiB), January 2005 Edition
- ^ 1975 Conrail Final System Plan
- ^ "Princeton University: Train Travel". Princeton University. http://www.princeton.edu/pr/visitors/traintravel.shtml. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
- ^ Rosenbaum, Joel; Tom Gallo (1997). NJ Transit Rail Operations. Railpace Newsmagazine. http://www.railpace.com/store/njt_book.htm.
- ^ Princeton University April 13, 2006 news release: "Renzo Piano selected to design University Place/Alexander Street neighborhood"
- ^ Hersh, Matthew (May 23, 2007). "PU Plans Still Relocate Dinky Station". Town Topics (Princeton NJ). http://www.towntopics.com/may2307/story1.html. Retrieved 2007-12-12.
- ^ National Association of Railroad Passengers 6/21/07 Blog entry: "More on the Dinky"
- ^ [1]
- ^ Reed, J. D. (March 31, 2002). "The Little Engine That Can". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9900E1D9103BF932A05750C0A9649C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=4. Retrieved 2007-12-12.
- ^ princeton.edu
[edit] External links
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