Morristown Line

Morristown Line
A Dover-bound Morristown Line train made up of MultiLevel coaches getting ready to bypass Mountain Station
Overview
OwnerAmtrak
(New York Penn Station to Kearny Connection)
New Jersey Transit
(all other trackage)
LocaleNorthern New Jersey
Termini
Stations26
Service
TypeCommuter rail
SystemNew Jersey Transit Rail Operations
Operator(s)New Jersey Transit
Rolling stockALP-46 and ALP-45DP locomotives, MultiLevel coaches, Comet coaches, Arrow III multiple units
Daily ridership50,000[1]
(13.5 million annually)[1]
History
OpenedNovember 19, 1836 (Newark–Orange)
January 1, 1838 (Orange–Morristown)
July 4, 1848 (Morristown–Rockaway)
July 31, 1848 (Rockaway–Dover)
January 16, 1854 (Dover–Hackettstown)
June 10, 1996 (New York–Newark via Kearny Connection/Midtown Direct)
Technical
Line length57.4 mi (92.4 km)
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
ElectrificationOverhead line25 kV 60 Hz AC
Route map

mi
56.9
Hackettstown
46.9
Mount Olive
48.0
Netcong
45.8
Port Morris Yard
45.4
Lake Hopatcong
43.1
Mount Arlington
Wharton
38.1
Dover
Dover Yard
original alignment
Rockaway
36.4
Denville
35.7
Mount Tabor
32.0
Morris Plains
M&E Main Line
to Roseland
29.8
Morristown
27.7
Convent Station
25.5
Madison
23.5
Chatham
20.1
Summit
17.8
Short Hills
16.5
Millburn
15.1
Maplewood
13.8
South Orange
13.1
Mountain Station
12.2
Highland Avenue
11.4
Orange
10.6
Brick Church
East Orange
9.0
7.8
Newark Broad Street
Newark Light Rail
Harrison
5.2
7.8
Meadows Maintenance Complex
5.0
Secaucus Junction
Hoboken Yard
0.0
Hoboken Terminal
Port Authority Trans-Hudson Hudson–Bergen Light Rail
0.0
New York Penn Station
Amtrak

The Morristown Line is an NJ Transit commuter rail line connecting Morris and Essex counties to New York City, via either New York Penn Station or Hoboken Terminal. Out of 60 inbound and 58 outbound daily weekday trains, 28 inbound and 26 outbound Midtown Direct trains (about 45%) use the Kearny Connection (opened June 10, 1996) to Penn Station; the rest go to Hoboken. Passengers can transfer at Newark Broad Street or Summit to reach the other destination. On rail system maps the line is colored dark green, and its symbol is a drum, a reference to Morristown's history during the American Revolution.

There is frequent service weekdays, with hourly service to/from New York (none going beyond Dover) on weekends. Until August 13, 2006, there was also hourly service to Hoboken. On that date, service between Hoboken and Summit was cut back to once every two hours on weekends. On May 11, 2008, off-peak weekday Hoboken-Dover trains (600 Series) were cut. In addition, weekend Gladstone trains were cut back to Summit, and a shuttle train is operated every two hours between Newark Broad Street and Hoboken Terminal.

The Millburn-Summit segment underwent extensive rehabilitation in the mid-2010s. This included the replacement of the creosote crossties on both tracks with concrete crossties, the replacement of all crossties on the double trestle over Short Hills Avenue, and the replacement of several sections of rail. Work has also progressed on rehabilitating both tracks between Summit and Dover with concrete crossties and new welded rail, and rehabilitation of select road overpasses.

Hurricane Sandy inflicted considerable damage on the Morristown Line on October 29–30, 2012, as fallen trees brought down catenary and signal wires and washed out sections of track, most notably through the New Jersey Meadowlands on both the main line and the Kearny Connection. Midtown Direct service was restored from Dover to New York on November 12, 2012;[2][3] service to Hoboken and west of Dover resumed on November 19.[4]

  1. ^ a b NJ Transit celebrates 10-year anniversary of MidTOWN Direct service New Jersey Transit Retrieved 2007-09-08
  2. ^ "NEW FERRY OPTION TO MIDTOWN MANHATTAN FROM HOBOKEN: EFFECTIVE MONDAY, NOVEMBER 12". NJ Transit Customer Notices: Post-Hurricane Service Updates and Travel Options. NJTransit.com. Retrieved 12 November 2012.
  3. ^ "Midtown Direct Will Resume Limited Service Monday". Millburn-Short Hills Patch. Archived from the original on 18 November 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2012.
  4. ^ "All But One NJ TRANSIT Rail Lines Fully or Partially Restored Starting Monday, November 19". njtransit.com. New Jersey Transit. Retrieved 19 November 2012.