NJ Transit Restores Northeast Corridor Service to Trenton; Delays Remain

New Jersey Transit has restored Northeast Corridor service from New York to Trenton, finally ending more than three days of suspended service due to Hurricane Irene.

Officials warned riders to expect delays of up to 45 minutes on Northeast Corridor trains because of ongoing signal problems from flooding in Trenton. The situation is much better, though, than it was yesterday, when flooding prevented Northeast Corridor trains from running south of New Brunswick, cutting off access to major transportation hubs in Princeton and Trenton.

NJ Transit announced the restoration of service in a statement posted on its Web site this morning. After being given the all clear from Amtrak to run test trains last night, NJ Transit completed several successful test runs and determined that rail service to and from Trenton can operate today, August 31, the statement said. Amtrak owns the Northeast Corridor line, which runs from Boston to Washington, D.C., but sections of the line are used by commuter rail agencies like NJ Transit.

With the return of Northeast Corridor service, NJ Transit is now running most of its trains on or close to schedule. Riders should expect delays on the North Jersey Coast and Raritan Valley lines, but the Morris & Essex, Main/Bergen County, Pascack Valley and Atlantic City lines, and the portion of the Montclair-Boonton line between New York and Montclair State University, are running on time. The Bound Brook station on the Raritan Valley line remains closed because of flooding, as do all stations between Little Falls and Mountain Lakes on the Montclair-Boonton line.

The one route that remains entirely down is the Port Jervis line, which extends the Main/Bergen County line into Rockland and Orange Counties in New York. Metro-North Railroad, which operates the Port Jervis line, said service would be suspended for several months because of severe flooding and extensive damage to the signal system. Buses will run on the Port Jervis train schedule until further notice.

Most NJ Transit buses are running on normal weekday schedules, but riders should expect delays, detours or cancellations because of flooding in some areas. Several buses that run in Passaic County remain suspended because of severe flooding along Route 23 in Wayne.

System-wide cross-honoring remains in effect, meaning riders can use their NJ Transit tickets and passes on any commuter train, light-rail train or bus, including private-carrier buses.