Now might be a good time for New Jersey residents to rethink our rail network. Sometime this decade, the Gateway Project is expected to open two new tunnels underneath the Hudson River, alleviating congestion to one of the nation’s busiest corridors and allowing for more trains than ever before.
Meanwhile, there are rumblings of moving Madison Square Garden one block to the east, which means we might finally have an opportunity to rebuild New York Penn Station. Why should this matter to New Jersey residents? Because transportation advocates want to bring “through-running” to the tri-state region, meaning New Jersey passengers headed into Manhattan could someday continue on their journey and end up in Long Island or Connecticut without transferring.
Over the years, rail modifications like the Montclair Connection—which gave Boonton line passengers direct access to Manhattan—have resulted in the loss of a number of stops—goodbye, Rowe Street Station—that will likely never be restored because the tracks that serve them are no longer in use. However, these stations in Newark and East Orange, which were closed over the years, are still located along active lines. If the right visionaries come along, they could be restored someday.
SOUTH STREET STATION
There seems to be a movement building to extend the PATH train to the Newark Liberty International Airport. If that happens, it would make restoring the old South Street Station, located a mile south of Newark Penn Station, an even greater possibility. The train station was demolished in the 1960s, but the rail infrastructure remains.
Mayor Ras Baraka has been vocal about adding a PATH stop in the South Ward and in 2017, Port Authority confirmed it still has plans to bring an additional stop between Newark Penn Station and the airport.
Most people may not grasp the amount of progress that is underway in the neighborhood surrounding the South Street Station. In the Lincoln Park Historic District, four new developments have been approved in the last four years, including the conversion of the South Park Presbyterian Church into an apartment building. Symphony Hall, built in 1925, has completed the first of a four-phase renovation project in hopes of returning the concert hall to its former prestige. Organizations, such as Lincoln Park Coast Cultural District, are banking on the arts to revive this historic neighborhood. But a new train station could speed up the transformation of this neighborhood and the Ironbound.
MEEKER AVENUE STATION
Beginning in the early 1900s, Weequahic residents used to be able to hop on a train at Meeker Avenue and travel on the Lehigh Valley Railroad north to Rochester – there was even a weekend service to Niagara Falls. The service was called the Blue Diamond, and they offered sleeper cars for overnight trips. A two-story station was built within Weequahic Park in 1912, but it was demolished in the 1940s when service was winding down at the station. In 1944, service continued but only one train stopped at the platform daily in each direction.
The station used to be located near the recently renovated Carmel Towers, now called Cosmo 440. Weequahic used to be a middle-class Jewish neighborhood with one of the best public schools in the nation in Weequahic High School. Although it has fallen on hard times, it still has all the amenities it once had – a golf course, a Frederick Law Olmsted-designed park, and proximity to one of the busiest airports in the nation. Imagine what rebuilding a train station with Midtown Direct service could do for local businesses and homeowners. Trains still pass by here on the way to Union Township on the Raritan Valley Line. All it needs is a station. In 1967, the Newark City Council passed a resolution in support of restoring service to Weequahic, but the plan floundered.
ROSEVILLE STATION
It’s a shame that the Roseville Station didn’t survive to see the unveiling of the Montclair-Boonton line in 2002, which snipped off the last leg of the old Boonton line between Montclair and Hoboken and instead redirected traffic along the Morris & Essex Line. Not only did this give Montclair direct train service into Manhattan, but it also funneled hundreds of new trains through Roseville.
Instead, Roseville Station suffered a slow death. In 1972, train service at Roseville was reduced to four trains daily in both directions. The reasons officials gave was reduced revenue and a “high incidence of mugging.” Post-riot Newark wasn’t a safe place, but crime has decreased since then and neighborhood is finally beginning to see promising developments.
AMPERE STATION
Ampere Station in East Orange has seen a movement of local residents — led by homeowners James Fulton and Miguel Saltos — who are fighting to restore service to this historic neighborhood, previously covered in Jersey Digs. This station, located between Bloomfield’s Watsessing Station and Broad Street Station, closed in 1991 due to low ridership – only about 50 commuters boarded trains here daily at the time – and the following year its beautiful National Register-listed depot was demolished after a fire.
However, a feasibility study completed in 2005 found that as many as 600 riders would use the station if it were restored, making it busier than Watsessing Station. If Fulton and Saltos are successful in restoring service here, their efforts could serve as a model for restoring other shuttered stations.
