Passenger Trains > My Free Ride on NJT

I live in Delaware and last week Ihad a short test at Penn Medicine Philly.  I caught a SEPTA train from Newark, DE to Philly,  The tests were quickly competed and I had 5 hours until the next SEPTA train back to Newark,  Time enough for lunch in Atlantic CIty. NJT was offering free rides all week. I took SEPTA over to 30th St Station Philly and downstairs to NJT to Atlantic City.   I have never ridden the Atlantic City Line.  The train heads north out of 30th St on the NEC. There are numerous old abandoned warehouses.  It passes the old North Piladelphia Station then heads East at Frankfurt JCT across the Delaware River on the impossing Delair Bridge built by the PRR 125 years ago. Below the bridge is the enourmous Port Richmond Generating Station, now abandoned but looking like a monumental industrial age Greek Temple.  Across the river, the bridge used to be electrified for PRR juice freights to south Jersey Pavonia yards.  Pennsauken, NJ the first stop.  I was using my GPS and mostly 45 mph running.  I was not impressed with speed, but very impressed with dispatching as we met a westbound NJT headed to Philly.  It arrived at the station exactly as we did.   On to Cherry Hill and Lindenwald.  Outside Lindenwald the train took off.  We were rolling. 70, 75,76 78.  My GPS showed a max of 86 but I suspect it was 79mph railroad and the blip is attributed to GPS anomally. 

We rolled.  The track is straight and in very good condition.  Amtrak had rebuilt the line in the 80s.  But Amtrak did not stay long and turned over to NJT not even 10 years later. I had anticipated that the line had degraded but was very pleasanly surprised. I pictured PRR K4s, or E6s, or Reading G3 Pacifics doing 80 mph on the PRSL 70 years prior.  Steam was used into the 50s.  It is 65 miles Philly to AC.  We did it with 7 stops in just over 1:30 min.  I googled the same trip by car at that time and it was 1:20 min.  There is little to no visible scenery from the train.  The trees have grown along the ROW and you are basically treed in.  There are numerous grade crossings.  I wonder about the engineer in the cab control car at 79mph.  Got to be some angst on the late night runs.   I don't hear of many fatal collisions on Action News.   The engine is at the west end so we were in push mode.  I always marvel at real trains pushing at full speed.  I could never run my HO backwrds when I did that.  But that's a different story.  The engines are old GP40s rebuilt by Conrail for NJT.  

Another perfect meet outside Egg Harbor, then into Atlantic City.  The convention ceter is part of the train station, but it was dormant that day.  Time enough to walk to the boardwak, about 15 min walk.  I recall that the old PRR station was closer maybe where Balleys Casino is???   Time to sit for a slice of pizza.  Things were pretty quiet as many schools had started back.  Back to the station and return to Philly.  We returned to Philly right on the money.  Speaking of money, my day of train riding did not cost me anything.  My SEPTA Senior pass, and NJT free week.  Normal fare is about $12 each way.   Tolls are about the same if you drive.  I thought NJT conductors might do a head count to see how many took advantage.  They did a thank you for riding on the PA.  It sounded suncere.  The train was pretty full both ways.  

NOTE:  I did not see any vagrants or druggies in coach.  Many retired folks like me.  The windows were dirty.  

Some cell phone shots:  Nothing special, just grab shots.  
1.  Ship on the Delaware River near Claymont DE. From a SEPTA train.  You can almost spit in the river from the old PRR mainline (NEC_.
2.  Heading north out of 30th St Philly passed old nast factories in North Phily along NEC
3.  Port Richmond Generating station now abandoned below the Delair Bridge over Delaware River.  They used to generate power for the PRR.  

more to follow

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4.NJT Cab car on the east end of train.  I;ve got to believe there is a little pucker factor at 79mph and the numerous grade crossings.  
5.  Pizza on the boardwalk.    Mmmmmmmm good.   Not too busy mid week the last week of August.
6.  A GP40 rebuilt by Conrail I believe.  They don't have quite the demands of an Amtrak Long Distance P42 but these things have been around a long time.  Real workhorses.

more to follow

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Nice trip report, thanks for sharing

7.  The GP40 on our 3 car train.  7 intermediate stops they have real get up and go.   
8.  Approaching 30th St Station Philly and Penn Coach Yard with a bunch of Acela 2's waiting to be tested.  

End of post

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Two things.
It is Frankford Junction, not Frankfurt Junction.
Second, the windows on NJT coaches are FILTHY. One can barely see out of them.
 

"But Amtrak did not stay long........" You are right about that - 6 years,
that is all, 1989-1995, a victim of idiot Tom Down-size "Mercer cutbacks."
Amtrak spent all that time and money rebuilding the line in the late 1980's,
used it for 6 years, and then walked away from it leaving NJT by themselves.
But I digress........Excellent photos Tominde and thanks for sharing.
Oh, by the way, Pavonia Yard is in Camden.
 

I went from New Jersey to Long Island on Saturday, and just to the city today.

Despite NJT's best efforts to ruin Saturday's trip, I made it by a minute. The Raritan Line train waited beyond Cranford 15 minutes for a late westbound. They could have done the passing meet at Hunter rather than Aldene. First connection at Newark at 8:22am was gone. We pulled into Track A at 8:27am just as the next train to NYPS at 8:29am pulled into Track 1. All those who ran made it, otherwise, nearly an hour for the next train. 

Coming home, the 7:07pm Coast Line train was on Track 11. When I went down to Track 11 - no train, until I saw the tail lights spotted all the way west on the platform. It is a 16 car platform. The train must have only been 6 cars rather than 9. We had to run forward several cars just to be able to squeeze into the doors. Doors did not shut until 7:14pm, so I ran from my LIRR train arrival at  7:04pm from Track 20 for nothing. . 

Today ran smother, but no seats available east of Newark, yet several a$$hole passengers put stuff on vacant seats. Mesmerized by their phones and their obligatory white ear pods, they see nothing, hear nothing, and are effectively incoherent. 
Coming home, I took PATH out of Manhattan and away from the chaos to get my RVL train home. 

I don't ride NJT unless I have reason to. You never know what you will be in for. 

 

That does look like a fun trip. Shades of Reading G3s and P70s.

Very nice report and pictures! I spent all of the three days of Labor Day weekend riding NJT trains. I didn’t do the ACRL but I need to ride and railfan that line sometime. It’s been 30 years since I rode that line and I was a kid back then.

This past Friday, Saturday, and Monday, I rode the NJCL to various shore towns. In fact, right after my office closed an hour early on Friday, I decided to combine my passion for trains and pizza by heading to Bradley Beach to eat at this amazing pizza spot that is part of a bar in Neptune! On Saturday, I explored Bay Head, Point Pleasant Beach, Manasquan, and Spring Lake. I made the best out of the railfanning considering that there were no Geeps on the shuttle trains.

Fare free week wasn’t w/o any delays. Many of the trains that I rode and photographed were at least 10 minutes late. I’m going to be creating a thread about my railfanning experiences on the Lower NJCL in a couple of days.

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