This heat wave made me want to get out of my non-Air Conditioned Apartment to spend an afternoon-evening riding the last stretch of New Jersey Transit’s Northern divisions that I still haven’t been on the Montclair-Boonton Line out to Hackettstown. I also decided it was time to visit a few more stations on the diesel portion of the Boonton Line beyond Montclair that is NJT’s last branch to only receive peak direction rush-hours only service. I didn’t quite accomplish my goals as this trip report discusses:
I leave the house at 12:20 for the A train down to Chambers Street–(1 Photos). Arriving I finally get my first photos of the R160s on the C, just of the destination signs on the opposite platform, I’m in the middle of the train so no end photos.
I then walk over to the World Trade Center PATH station–(1 Photo) and notice the buildings now appearing above the station.
I TAP my SmartLink Grey with 4 more rides to use before it expires on September 3. I bought the card to add to my collection before I realized its limited shelf life.
At 1:12 I Hear All Aboard on track 4 and go over to the Hoboken train to make a stop at Exchange Place. We soon leave and I make basically a 2 minute stop with my Newark train coming in right behind. I don’t take any pictures of the crowded platform with about five PATH employees, knowing how PATH is not a system that appreciates photography and not wanting to get delayed with my focus of the day, a photo stop on the Boonton Line and finally riding out to Hackettstown to finish NJT except the Atlantic City Line. I arrive in Harrison–(2 Photos) at 1:34.
I have a nice walk through the new transit oriented development that changes every time I’m there to Newark-Broad Street, walking down the platform of Riverfront Stadium–(1 Photos) on the Newark City Subway.
I pass the Newark-Broad Street City Subway Station–(2 Photos) and walk up into the Broad Street Station–(9 Photos) 10 minutes before. It takes me a minute walking the outbound island platform to find the little sign for the bank of two TVMs and when I do I buy my $4.75 ticket to Wayne-Route 17. I think I might have been able to get a free stopover in Montclair at that fare. I also get the usual photos of trains entering and leaving the busy Broad Street Station. I also think NJT is now using a universal white text on black background for all train arrival displays. In this situation it isn’t a good think since you have to look at the individual station stops to know this is a Montclair-Boonton Line train to Dover and not an hourly or better MidTown Direct Building.
At 2:18 our four car train with two open arrives. The four cars are all Comet Vs with a diesel locomotive, only two are actually open for passenger occupancy.
We leave and the conductor collects my WNRT23 ticket. Their not bothering with seat checks.
- 2:21 – Curve off the main line and onto the Montclair Branch, passing an abandoned platform, Roseville Avenue and an inbound Montclair Line train.
- 2:22 – Another abandoned station Ampere with the sawed off remains of its canopy.
- 2:23 – The first stop: Watsessing Ave, good low-level height platforms, no concrete ties. We then pass the abandoned ends that have more staircases that used to lead down to these platforms.
- 2:26 – Bloomfield with a waiting room open until 1:00pm that was closed on my one visit, a few people get on. The line becomes more leafy.
- 2:28 – Glen Ridge. The Montclair branch is reminding me of Metra with the frequent stops, I notice one person getting on.
- 2:31 – Bay Street with the high-level platform and first grade-crossing of the day. We curve on the new section of track that is the Montclair Connection and pass the DeCamp Buses depot.
- 2:33 – Walnut Street, someone else boarding. The saloon depot is exactly the same. The conductor doesn’t seem to ask her for a ticket.
- 2:36 – Passing houses we arrive at Watchung Avenue. I notice the conductor is systematically flipping seats back for the train’s return trip or overnight layover.
- 2:39 – Upper Montclair with the Restaurant Depot in the modern replacement for the former depot that burned down. I notice an old red building covered in ads that I assume is something that was once freight related.
- 2:41 – Mountain Avenue. There is a slight delay from a man who boarded the wrong train, trying to get to South Orange. I see a crew fixing signals.
- 2:43 – Montclair Height. Exactly the same without a depot. I realize I’ve never been on this track before, walking it (and all the way to Little Falls from Upper Montclair where I got off on my second Montclair-Boonton Line trip). The conductor is flipping now empty seats. We keep passing houses.
- 2:46 – Montclair Stare University Station at Little Falls with its island platform and modern signs.
- 2:49 – Come to a stop by the yard to let an employee off the locomotive. We slowly pass the yard and I see the remains of the platform of Great Notch and then the catenary and second track ends. We finally pick up speed with a long stretch between station stops, go under power lines and through trees.
- 2:53 – Little Falls and we continue.
- 2:54 – Cross a river and shopping malls and then over US-48 and I-80 into Wayne.
At 2:56 I arrive at the modern Wayne-Route 17 Park & Ride Station. This station was opened in 2008 and is just north of I-80. The parking lot is full but I think most of the Commuters here ride the much more frequent Express bus service to Manhattan than rail service but building the rail platform isn’t a bad thing. It at least provides an excellent secondary option for commuters who normally take the bus (and the buses allow for midday returns for those who normally take the train) signs proudly say that rail passes are valid on the buses as well so you can choose your route! The one thing I find a bit sad is seeing the Departure Vision monitors on the high-level platform that show just how little rail service there is with the first departure during tomorrow’s rush hour already on the display! (I just got off the first PM trip, not the last)
I start walking north after getting my photo essay. It begins an empty, sidewalk-less 4 lane Highway before a sidewalk begins as I finally turn north and pass industry. I walk to Mountain View Wayne and get photos of the station without any trains stopping.
I keep walking onto Linclon Park where I photograph the get train heading to Denville only. Here much to my surprise the station house doors are propped open so I can get an interior shot!
I keep walking and on this final segment the heat really starts getting to me, as I near the Towanco Station this train passes led my a Metro-North Locomotive
I get to Towanco and photograph the 6:11 train running 5 minutes late stopping in the station. A Lakeland Bus arrives at the same time and I see some commuters going into the Rail Station’s Parking lot. Luckily I also know through using myNextBus that my next mode of transit the really infrequent (every 2-3 hours!) Bus Route 871 is also a few minutes late. Otherwise I would have been stuck across the street and not on the rail platform
At 6:20 I get on bus route 871 (route MCM1 until 2010) and pay my $1.50 fare to go the 4 miles, its a 30 footer. There 3 other passengers. I get off about 10 minutes later in front of the grand and historic Boonton Depot, now Switch Bar & Nightclub.
I walk back towards the modern NJT station (with a tiny modern canopy) and around to get pictures of the other abandoned platform with a small shelter house. I then head back and get photos of the modern stations who’s ADA wheelchair ramp is just before the historic station.
7:03 – My Lake Hopatcong-bound train comes in late 12 minutes late. 4 of us are boarding.
We pass a bunch of old NJT locomotives and Lakawanna Cars rusting away doesn’t look like their visible from anywhere except a passing train. The conductor comes and tells me to transfer at Dover. I ask why not Lake Hopatcong, her response is it doesn’t matter but most people change at Dover.
- 7:06 – Stop at Mountain Lakes. A nice brick station house is now a Restaurant. The only station on the Montclair-Boonton Line not shared with the Morristown Line that I’m missing We continue by trees in the evening passing houses. Their some lakes.
- 7:10 – We slow down approaching Denville Morristown Line
- 7:12 – A spur into a lumber yard.
- 7:13 – Arrive Denville with the tower and separate platform for Boonton Line trains as a New York-bound MidTown Direct train arrives at its separate station. I need to come back here at some point. It’s too neat a station. We pick up speed running under wire again and pass between lakes. New trackage!
- 7:18 – a pass a yard and warehouse with some lumber and a small freight car delivery.
- 7:21 – Pass a small yard with a single BiLevel Midtown Direct Trainset as we enter this station.
- 7:22 – We arrive as a train passes the other way. Dover has a high-level island platform with grade crossings to a nice historic station house. I see someone inside the waiting room. The other end of the island platform leads down to the middle of a street. We pass a freight house. We leave Dover and enter an open cut as the catenary continues.
- 7:24 – The catenary finally ends. According to my phone the Hackettstown-bound train is ahead of us. Well see what happens! If worse comes to worse I’ll just get stock at Lake Hopatcong for about an hour.
- 7:28 – Pass a Lake off in the distance and some houses. The line stays two tracks as there some freight spurs and we go through the woods.
- 7:31 – The second to last inbound train passes. I refresh Mount Arlington and realize that we’re behind that Hackettstown-bound train. I shouldn’t have bothered coming up here and just gotten off at Dover!
- 7:34 – Arrive at the two modern high-level platforms of Mount Arlington. A modern day Park & Ride.
The conductor comes through telling us Last Stop, Last Stop! and that one door will be opened behind us. We finally arrive in Lake Hopatcong at 7:39, 15 minutes late and the conductor wishing everyone a “Good Night” judging from the few cars left in the parking lot and my refreshing of departure vision its clear that the train to Hackettstown I wanted to take has already left (the next one isn’t until 9:05pm that would leave me stranded) on time ahead of us at 7:37. Why NJT? Although I wonder if I was the only passenger trying to connect.
I get my photo essay of the simple station with two tracks and a single open platform (Hoboken-bound trains board from the grade crossing to the abandoned platform that used to serve that track). I then decide its time for a walk to see if I can find anywhere for dinner in the area. I stumble upon an overly grommet burger place (such a fad now that I’m sick of) but the burger is good and its a pleasant place to spend most of my layover. My iPhone dies from all the GPsing and DepartureVision refreshing but I realize the timetable I picked up in Newark is slightly out of date and the last inbound train from Hackettstown that I’m taking is running 10 minutes later. It’s also making every single stop to Hoboken and not skipping 3 (Short Hills, Millburn and Maplewood) as the timetable led me to believe.
I return to Lake Hopatcong in the darkness with just one car left (another Boonton Line train arrives to terminate while I’m eating dinner) in the parking lot. I buy my $11 ticket back to Hoboken (a decent deal at 24¢ per mile for the 45 mile ride back to Hoboken, the price is the same from Hackettstown since every station beyond Dover is in the same fare zone) Another car drives up and is fumbling at the TVM. My train comes on time at 8:52 as someone is still fumbling with the TVM. I tell the conductor this as I board the single door. His response: “Your here, He isn’t and I have a schedule to keep” We leave perhaps that person was simply buying a ticket to Hackettstown on the 9:04 train, I will never no!
It’s a slow local ride through the night, I notice that many of the historic depots have their doors pop open and I wonder if this is to try and ventilate them in the heat wave since their not air conditioned. I nearly have to make a late night photo stop at Orange when I notice the doors to its depot open (the station normally closes at 9:00am). I resist the temptation and arrive in Hoboken Terminal–(3 Photos) at 10:31, right on time. I get off the train and notice we have a Metro-North Comet V (all 3 trains I’ve taken day have been Comet Vs). I then walk towards the depot and see that ticket sales are still in trailers and that the benches are still all gone from inside the station house. At least some kids have been allowed to paint on them brightening the large squares in the middle of the station house up.
I head down through the recently pedestrian passageway (pre-Sandy) and down to the end of the Hoboken PATH platforms.
I decide to stay on PATH to Herald Square and make the downstairs only transfer to the D train with its small mezzanine beneath PATH (although the Manhattan Mall entrances are all closed). I walk up to the front of the platform and the D train comes. Unsure if the A is running local yet I take it to 125 Street and an A Express comes in right behind my D train, I’m home at 11:25, not too bad from Hoboken.