Rahway/Linden station location question

Every day I look at the Rahway and Linden station areas, and wonder why the platforms were moved to the outside of the tracks (going east)

Linden and Rahway's eastbound platforms were both island plaforms, correct, between tracks 1 and 2?

Track A looks as if it was exclusively for freight operations, and that the NJCL Connecting track was never really intended for passegner operation, with a switch formally located right at the middle of it heading down the hill (although the trees inbetween this track have recently been cleared oddly enough).

Was Linden's westboudn platform also an island, and was track B also used exclusively for freight???

Why and when were the station platforms moved to track A? Was it for ADA necessity when rebuild for high platform?

Its amazing to roll through this area and see the tremendous amount of freight that was probably generated at one time between Newark and Rahway......I bet Amtrak could use of that revenue now......

As long as I can remember, Rahway and Linden has always had their platforms eastbound right where they are now....save for recent construction turning it into a high level.

Rahway USED to have an island platform as well. There was a seperate, single entrance for it from downstairs, long since covered over on both ends. You can probably still see remnants from the main platforms (which have always been there). They are on the extreme outsides because you have those tracks for BOTH the corridor and the shore trains. They are ideally placed. THe island platform would have been in "Amtrak territory" where no locals would normally stop.
I remember the old island platform, though. I bet its been gone for at least 20 years. I wonder if I have it on some of my old Rahway pics? I have to look.
BigDell

Im just curious as to why they were moved. I know that they would be in "Amtrak" territory, but it wouldn't matter with Coast Line trains being able to come up the Eastbound hole (the middle tunnel) instead of the connecting track, as tehy do now, and NEC traisn would just stay on 1.

Even North Rahway looks as if it had an island plaform between 1 and 2. I didn't start to ride the trains until the mid 90's, and the new Rahway station was being constucted then. What was it before....a low level at the same locations as the current platforms? It doesn't look like the eastbound platform could be a low level, as it looks as if its built into teh structure of the station building???? And it doens't look as if the platforms were elsewhere, and they just built the high level in a different location, like Elizabeth.

As I said in a different thread, it would be nice if they would add an addition switch to Elmora interlocking going from 1 to 2 going east, because then, locals coming up A wouldn't have to wait for trains to pass on 1 and clear up the interlocking, and would allow simulatiuos movements and could eliminate the built in almost 2 minutes between Linden and Elizabeth for eastbounds, and the delays encountered there beign held for trains to pass on 1, which always take lnoger than 2 minutes anyway. But speeds could be increased if the plaforms were still islands and local trains would run on 1 all the time because they wouldn't have the slow signals coming into Rahway (on NEC trains) and wouldn't have the slow signals on A going into Elmora's 45mph crossovers.

oh well.......

So Bigdell, Rahway had 3 platforms at one time???

Wow.....I wonder how many people missed their trains because of that!!!

JT - I'm not sure what the purpose of the original island platform at Rahway was, but it was added after the grade separation through town occurred in the 1880's. Earlier photos show 2, then 4 tracks at grade.

I do recall having to change trains in the '50's, exiting on that platform and walking under once or twice, but I can't tell you why it happened. I don't ever recall a PRR Clocker or long distance train stopping there, but I seem to remember seeing a Jersey Central passenger consist stopped there once or twice.

There was a story that the kids used to tell about that being the "penitentiary platform" where all of the convicts were detrained for the Rahway Reformatory to keep them separate from other railroad passengers.

Rahway had a center low platform after the high platform was demolished. It was located between 1 and 2, and was only used in the same manner as all the low platforms on the NEC when A track was out of service. It was removed from service just before they started the rebuilding of Rahway. If you look between track 1 and 2 just east of the pot signals on A and 1, you can see where the stairway from ground level came up. It has been sealed, and now looks like a large concrete pad.

Also, the way the NEC was designed, the two inner tracks were for freight, and the two oouter tracks were for passenger. If you look at the model board in any of the old towers, it had the tracks labeled as eastward passenger and freight and westward passenger and freight, along with the number designation.

GandyDancer wrote:There was a story that the kids used to tell about that being the "penitentiary platform" where all of the convicts were detrained for the Rahway Reformatory to keep them separate from other railroad passengers.

Seperating Rahway Reformatory folks and railroad passengers. What's the difference? :D

Seriously though, another thing on the wish list should be to move the switch from Track 1 to A a little more south. This way, NEC trains could platform more cars on the platform. Not a neccesity, but it could be nice. Back when I was new to the rails, I almsot missed my stop because of that.

Sirsonic wrote:Also, the way the NEC was designed, the two inner tracks were for freight, and the two oouter tracks were for passenger. If you look at the model board in any of the old towers, it had the tracks labeled as eastward passenger and freight and westward passenger and freight, along with the number designation.

Interesting...I guess this explains the old 15mph X-overs between 2 and 3 at Elmora. Which Amtrak has since removed. Also explains the fly-over on 4 track at Lane.

I always wondered why the ticket office part of Linden Station was situated where it is. Sure I understand it is lower than the tracks because it was probably built before the Pennsy main line (now NEC) was elevated. But the ticket station building looks to be at a right angle to where it should be situated. In 1969 I recall an unused center platform.

When I commuted in 1969 between Linden and Trenton I took a local train that regularly used Septa MU's. Never knew why but they were regularly used on that reverse commute train. Otherwise Linden was mostly a stop for New Brunswick(Jersey Ave.), Perth Amboy, and Trenton locals using MP54's. Most shore (North Jersey Coast) trains skipped Linden as I recall. Once on a snowy day as I was waiting for my train I remember a diesel powered shore train coming through. I wonder if such a train got a GG1 somewhere east of Linden? Did diesels ever run into Penn Station, NY? It would have been a choking ride for passengers even on other trains. Many coaches were open window back then.

Back in the early 1900s-191xs, Pennsy planned a freight-only line which would parallel the current NEC in NJ. Two tracks, west of the main from Trenton to Colonia, and then outlying the busy four track main from Colonia thru Elizabeth. A jumpover bridge for the eastbound freight main at Colonia was part of the deal. This also meant that the passenger platforms had to be inside the freight tracks north of Colonia.

Tracks A-B Linden to Elizabeth are part of this project, as was the platform layout at Rahway (extra piers to support the not contructed outer tracks, and the NJCL duck-under).

Triumph V has a section (6-7 pages) on the project, which was suspended during world war 1 and not resumed


Paul

Ever since I rode the NEC in the mid 1980s, all stops from Rahway to North Elizabeth going toward NYP were side platforms.

When I rode through the station in February for the first time since 1990 (that's 15 years of having to deal with the MBTA), it looks a lot better than what I saw 15 years ago. The station didn't seem to be falling apart, and the police precinct on the platform (don't really remember that, but it might have been) did seem like a good thing.

Jeff

So on the 6 track portion of railroad between Elmora and Union, the original plan was to have track A as eastbound freight, 1 eastbound passegner, 2 eastbound freight, 3 westbound freight, 4 westbound passegner, B westbound freight???

Wow, 4 freight tracks adn 2 station tracks......interesting

So for a long time, Linden was not a significant stop on the NEC and only used by certain trains?

Boy, times have changed!!! Now you can count on a little more than one hand the amount of freight customers that are currently on the NEC.

The NEC in NJ had abundant freight customers into the 1940s. Working these moves into a very busy mainline tested the skills of many dispatchers.

You can see evidence along the main, especially around Trenton, Hamilton, north of PJ, the Brunswicks, the spurs into Camp Kilmer, North Rahway / Merck. Lots of well paying industrial jobs now long gone.