Greenwood Lake Line

The NYS&W has been bit-by-bit removing sections of rail from its portion of the former Erie Greenwood Lake Line in Pompton Plains and Pequannock. On Monday trucks were lifting rail near the Pompton Plains station, just past where the active portion of the line to Morris Industries. Last year rail sections were lifted in Pequannock between the Newark Pompton Turnpike and the Pompton River.

Are these rails being used elsewhere on the system (if so, where?) or is this a drip-drip-drip way of ripping up the line? Are they permitted to do so?

Thanks...

From what ive heard i think that some of the rail is going down to Ridgefeild Park for another siding in the small yard. Also i think some of the rail is going to Sparta Junction for a new factory being built that will have rail service and its own siding.

They can legallyremove the track. Since its not abandoned, the RR would be obligated to replace it should a new customer request service.

The track is being ripped up to facilitate construction of a rail trail from Riverdale to the Mountain View section of Wayne.

The trail, being promoted by Morris County's office of Planning and Development, will be offically known as the NYS&W Bicycle and Pedestrian Path.

Here's Morris County's offical web posting of information regarding this project.

http://co.morris.nj.us/transportation/o ... /NYSW.html

Railtrailbiker,
I was already the first to use it exclusively for trail biking. Yay!

From what I remember from last October, the only part that wasn't ride-able was between Black Oak Ridge rd. and before Mountain View, near the "homeless" camp. Full-sized trees had grown up between the ties.

Personally, I think that ROW should be part of the proposal to bring NJT to Butler.

Railtrailbiker,
I was already the first to use it exclusively for trail biking. Yay!

From what I remember from last October, the only part that wasn't ride-able was between Black Oak Ridge rd. and before Mountain View, near the "homeless" camp. Full-sized trees had grown up between the ties.

Personally, I think that ROW should be part of the proposal to bring NJT to Butler.

Fairlane57:

I biked most of the route last summer and recall those trees as well. You can bypass the overgrown stretch by using the Passaic Valley Water Commission's ROW just east of the RR ROW. This route will bring you right down to Parish Drive in Wayne.



Tony

Be VERY careful around the "homeless camp" at Mountain View. A friend and I were scouting the area last summer to find where the diamond used to be and were confronted by one of the vagrants "living" there. Fortunatley I was not alone, otherwise who knows what might have happened as this individual was quite inebriated and hostile. Also the Greenwood Lake branch in Mountain View (still part of NS' Totowa Industrial) goes through the part of Wayne that gets flooded quite often and the area is full of mosquitos and neeldess to say I got eaten alive so make sure you use plenty of bug repellent if you plan to visit the area in the warmer months.

fairlane57 wrote:Railtrailbiker,
I was already the first to use it exclusively for trail biking. Yay!

From what I remember from last October, the only part that wasn't ride-able was between Black Oak Ridge rd. and before Mountain View, near the "homeless" camp. Full-sized trees had grown up between the ties.

Personally, I think that ROW should be part of the proposal to bring NJT to Butler.

Ummm, this homeless camp is gone. I've been riding this RR/water line for the past 3 years pretty much year round to go to work, they did set up a camp with a shelter last october and into winter but I think because of that, they attracted the eye of the local authorities who probably evicted them. Because one day, I saw the whole shelter was removed and most of the chairs, tables that were set up, all gone. And since then I have not seen anybody there. There are some chairs setup but I really do not see any real sign of habitation or so. I used to see a person living under the Rt 23 overpass by the tracks, evidence is still there but I haven't seen an actual person.

My dealings with them have all been fine, I usually say hello when I see them and they will say hello back. One of them was tragically killed last winter in an accident (possible leading from alcohol) and was found by the tracks.

The NJDWSC does a great job in maintaining the trails, clearing downed trees and stuff, usually on a wednesday and I think every other week.

Right now, some company is working on the concrete foundation of the bridge that goes over Parish Drive, right by the Wayne Fire Department and as you know, the rails were removed south of Woodland Avenue to Jackson Ave. I saw the guys that were doing it and went around cause they had their truck all across the path.

Like I said, I ride that RR and water line daily, and in winter when there's not too much snow so if anybody wants to know trail conditions, let me know. I will avoid the path when it's really wet or icy, lots of alternate routes for me...

Fixing up the RR bridge over the pompton would be nice, I have scouted out that bridge a long time ago when I was checking the path out and since usually I'm always alone and there were huge No tresspassing signs and usually people at the construction site milling about, I didn't want to tresspass so typically I'll go over the river on the NPT and then cut in after the river. There's a huge steel fence over the southern end of the bridge too. That trail continues south over Haul Rd but after like a 1/2 mile or so, you run into somebody's fence! and it doesn't go around it, except back to Haul road and then south to Ryerson.

Jay


Jay

That idented area of Mountain View behind the strip mall (south of the old Boonton Line, and east of the Erie) is the former basin for the Morris Canal. You can still see the granite blocks used as part of the gateway for the feeder canal from the north.