Facility in South Amboy

I know there was a large coal gondola classification yard in South Amboy along the amboy secondary. Looking at historicaerials I can't even believe how massive it was.

But my question is with the facility south of there over the bridge, near the NJT station. I know that trains had to switch from electric to diesel before NJT electrified the line going south. But it looks like in the 40s-60s that it was much more than a engine switch around. Looks like a major locomotive shop and yard. I think it was part of the coal operations.

Can anyone clarrify. Wow this area sure is a ghost of its former self.

The location of this facility: if you are standing in the current NJT parking lot looking north toward where the coal yard used to be, look to your immediate right. It was huge...and it was all coal gondolas parked in the yard. Looks like the yard and buildings survived into the 1980s but now nothing but sand.

Are you referring to the old shops and roundhouse/turntable that belonged to the Raritan River Railroad?

Do you have a link to an aerial photograph or can you give some cross streets close to the location you are referring?

I think hes talking about the facility where the Arrows and GG1s used to layover.

Like in these pics:

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.p ... 73&nseq=66

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.p ... 25&nseq=80

Here is a map from the late 1800s of what I'm talking about. Some of the buildings are labled. Must have been a large facility at one time. Something to do with coal. All the freight cars were coal hoppers.
http://mapmaker.rutgers.edu/MIDDLESEX_C ... y_1876.jpg

When were the car dumpers and thawing sheds taken down? IIRC not until the late 1980's?
When I visited the site in 1984-86, the catenary was still up to the yard SE of the NY&LB, as were the many tracks in the yard still in place (but not used) A lot of "AC motor stop" signs were still there at end/s of catenary at that time.
I believe that even then, the GG1s still went up the spur to the SE into the yard to lay over.

The images from the yard to the west side of the NJT South Amboy line show an incredible 45 tracks, completely filled to capasity with coal cars in 1947. By 1975 the yard is empty, but all track remains. The yard to the east of the NJT line looks like it remained in use until the mid-1980s when it was oblitereated by a sand quarry operation.

I went exploring the area in 1995. It was a really neat place. The yard was completely in tact even with catenary, warning signs, illuminated "high wire/low wire" signs, signals, bullhorns, and everything. But it wasn't used. Tracks were rusted solid and ties were actually rotten to the point of disinegration.

The bridge that carried the yard over the NJT track had what I can only describe as a spider web of catenary over it, but no tracks as the bridge was now used by trucks accessing the sand quarry. Only 1 track was left, so the Amboy Secondary could drop down to the NJT line.

I used to live in South Amboy during the heyday of the coal yards. My parents and grandparents lived on Raritan Street, one block over from the yards. Many nights I was put to sleep by the slam of cars coupling, the whistle of GG1's (later E-44's) and the soft chuff chuff chuff of the dumpers (if the wind was right).

There was an engine house for the diesels by the dumpers, and it had a light repair facility for the GG1's. They did some repairs there, but major stuff was taken to someplace else.

The area by where they built the new station in South Amboy used to be the old MU storage yards. I wonder how they could have built there, after years of storing MUs and the GG1 waiting for Eastbound trains the place was soaked with oil drippings. Decades of cars sitting there leaking transformer oils and the occasional leaking diesel (Run track for changed diesels to the shops ran there also) meant there was a great depth of soaked, hazmat inspector attracting dirt.

It was always a good place to see engines, and talk to friendly RR employees.

That's not including the RRRR employees. Their facilities were south of the stuff on the map. I wonder why it didn't show on the map.

Pennsyjohn

Mark 1 video has a DVD out by the name of The New York And Long Branch,has good coverage of So.Amboy the shops and so on.Also has a section on the Raritan River.Covers engines changes,K4's,Gmotors and so on.Good stuff.

Hello, I've just been browsing this area on Google Earth. Can anyone advise whether there is new infrastructure work under way here. At 154 Main Street there appears to be a new bridge and trackbed in-situ. It may be that the sun was shining very brightly but this doesn't look like abandoned trackbed ?

Helllo,

What your looking at looks to be the Church Running Track which is used by Conrail Shared Assets Freight Train SA 31 to enter the North Jersey Coast Line. Here is a photo of SA 31 using Church.

http://kaback9.rrpicturearchives.net/sh ... id=1448898

Thanks for the info, but I can't reconcile the photo with the map. Have tried uploading a GE placemark with various file suffixes but all are "invalid". Not sure if it helps but absolute coords are 40° 29.232'N, 74° 16.903'W ?
Alternatively could you provide coords from where your photo was taken ? (I assume the photo "map" is generic one for S Amboy ?)

I think I may have answered my own query (!), found late 2006 ref on Trainorders to NJT replacing bridge over NJ Coast Line for the purpose of creating an electrified turning triangle ?? I wish GE would get it's maps upto date !!

canarytops wrote:I think I may have answered my own query (!), found late 2006 ref on Trainorders to NJT replacing bridge over NJ Coast Line for the purpose of creating an electrified turning triangle ?? I wish GE would get it's maps upto date !!

Haha ok no problems there, I wish GE and Windows would update their maps too!

Unfortunately you've now got me interested in the CRT (!), don't suppose you could provide a map ref of where your photo was taken from ?
Many thanks.

canarytops wrote:I think I may have answered my own query (!), found late 2006 ref on Trainorders to NJT replacing bridge over NJ Coast Line for the purpose of creating an electrified turning triangle ?? I wish GE would get it's maps upto date !!

The bridge over the Coast Line was rebuilt in conjunction with the South Amboy station project, which is what is going on in the area.

the Church running track had to be moved, because where it used to come into the Coast Line was in the area where the overhead pedestrian bridge is now. The entire running track was rebuilt when the bridge and track was rebuilt, and the connection moved east of the overhead bridge.

I haven't heard of any plans to electrify the Church Running track, but the Essay Running track IS electrified.

The Essay and Church running tracks come together and form a wye - so a train could be wyed in South Amboy, but not an electric train, as there is no wire on the Church RT.

Thats not to say that it won't be in the future, but there doesn't seem to be any provisions for it (catenary pole concrete bases, etc) which is something that NJT USUALLY does if it has plans for the relatively distant future.