Passenger Trains > NJ: Bay Head neighbors resist new rail facility

NJ.com has an article about concerns in the town of Bay Head over plans for a 38 foot high high building to house NJ Transit power equipment.  Following super storm Sandy, NJT has enhanced its infrastructure with elevated and hardened facilities. The neighbors make it clear they are not opposed to the facility, but find its size inappropriate for the area. Much of the train's  loop area and downtown Bay Head was under six feet of water due to storm surge in the storm.

Pictures with the article show the abandoned empbankment which once carried Pennsylvania Railroad trains to Seaside, down the peninsula. Some of that right of way is now the south bound lanes of NJ 35.

https://www.nj.com/ocean/2020/02/ugly-building-will-keep-trains-running-but-shore-town-says-itll-ruin-the-view.html

Seems to me NJT has not a power supply problem, but a power distribution problem. Why not have buy commercial power, which its own inland substations, and cable it to Bay Head yard ?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/20 07:10 by joemvcnj.

The residents there are never happy when it comes to the train.  A street and houses get built right up by the crossing and toward the yard, and they complain about the engines idling, despite the railyard being there for a much longer time.  So NJT upgrades the yard so the engines are more on a stand by mode.  HEP gets shutoff as the train pulls away from the station, to reduce the noise of the engines running around the loop.  Then there are complaints about the lighting.  There was pushback when the electric stands for the grace crossings at Osborne Avenue and Route 35 where elevated.  Many saying to high.   

I am not an electrical/mechanical/civil engineer, so I am not sure if the substation is too high/too big or not.  I don;t know what type of power the rail yard would need.  There is the yard lighting, the yard office lighting, power for the diesel engines to more on a stand by mode and I think there is a inspection area for the trainsets.  Also, what level of elevation would be needed to prevent flooding from a future storm based on what Sandy did.  I am not saying NJT has been a perfect neighbor, but they are often in a catch 22 here.  

 

Get an architect to work with municipality and community to add a style such as Victorian to exterior of building facing community. Add landscaping such as a tree buffer, but not too tall with long branches. Do not want a tree falling in transformer yard and switchgear. Not shown, but hopefully electricity in and out are cables, not open wire.