Amtrak Autumn Express Thread

Regular website is up now and excursion tickets are showing as available.

Ill be watching from Teaneck - this should be fun to watch and hopefully a precursor to returning to 4 tracks in NJ.

Four tracks!!, for what, there is not going to be passsenger service here again......
Noel Weaver

I won't be able to ride it, but plan to photograph it. Going to get the northbound trip from Highland and the southbound in Beacon.

Just bought my tickets for the second year in a row! Cant wait for this, should be a great ride.

Noel Weaver wrote:Four tracks!!, for what, there is not going to be passenger service here again......
Noel Weaver

In my professional opinion, there is nearly 99% certainty that 50% of the ROW will be used for passenger trains within NJ, between North Bergen and Dumont before 2045.

While the local municipalities are waiting for two new tunnels to NY, they are flooding the West Shore with fast-track zoning variances and allowing high density development - tens of thousands of new apartments at the sites of all the former stations.

CSX hasn't gotten capacity issues between North Bergen and Dumont, where this will be built, although after Gateway is operational.

Here is an image of developments approved in the just the past 12 months:

CSX might not have capacity problems in this area but if they are smart they will not allow the use of their property for any passenger rail of any sort. The state chose to rob the railroads way back when and CSX owns this property. There are adequate N/S rail lines that are not that far from this line and could be used if needed.
Noel Weaver

The line had 4 tracks from Weehawken to Dumont till about 1959.Presumably there would be room for 2 passenger tracks. CSX would have to agree and be compensated. I have no idea if restoring passenger service makes sense or is practical but looks like it could be done if NJ were willing to pay.

The state never taxed CSX (it taxed the predecessor RR's), so that is in the past. Why is it smart to not share tracks in NJ, with the enormous ROW - it is one of the highest ridership bus lines in NJ at the moment, and the planned densification of the areas around the stations is deliberately being planned to force NJ Transit to cut a deal with CSX.

To Noel's point - make the existing lines more commuter-friendly - even reverse-commuter friendly before making yet another passenger line... (the latter of which would perhaps make me use it.) Funnel them over from this supposed new demand area, it's not that far...

But that said: ahem, let's keep it to the excursion - not potential restoration of future passenger service...which is not an Amtrak thing.

Here's a good question... if I want to ride facing forward on the river side of the train heading north, what side of the train should I sit on when boarding at Penn? I'm thinking I need to sit on the left facing backwards, unless there's another reverse move after Newark.

I believe the left side leaving NYP..\ Also if some seats are backward you will be facing forward when it really counts.

Noel Weaver

I agree. The train should reverse in newark and then proceed through South Kearny and then continue North to the Northern Running Branch towards the River Line.

Tickets are still available for both days! I'm glad because I forgot until today.

It's a shame they are running it they way they are. With it running north along the western shore; I feel like it's almost always going to be bad lighting for pictures; unless there is a spot where it turns west or loops back south around something.