(rshsdepot) Union, NJ

[Bernie Wagenblast <brwagenblast_@_comcast.net>]

All aboard, and break out the champagne

New Year's Eve opening planned for $29.8M Union Twp. rail station


Tuesday, September 24, 2002


BY GABRIEL H. GLUCK
Star-Ledger Staff

If you're heading to the Big Apple this New Year's Eve, you'll likely be
able to grab the train in Union Township and be among the first to utilize
the newest rail station on the Raritan Valley Line.

The $29.8 million station at Morris Avenue and Green Lane, which is expected
to serve at least 800 commuters a day, is scheduled to open Dec. 31, said
Jack DiSarro, NJ Transit's senior operations planner for rail services.
DiSarro met yesterday with members of the Raritan Valley Rail Coalition, a
commuter group, at the Westfield municipal building.

While much of the meeting focused on the new Union station, DiSarro also
said any revival of the West Trenton line could be years away. The service,
which tied into the Raritan Valley Line at Bound Brook, was eliminated in
1982 because of low ridership.

Proponents argue that growth in Somerset and Mercer counties justifies
resuming service. However, freight traffic on that line increased
significantly over the years and now Conrail and CSX are looking at
requiring NJ Transit to build an overpass to reduce congestion between
passenger and freight traffic, DiSarro said. Such a project could cost well
over $100 million, according to some estimates.

But in Union, there is no question that it is only a matter of months before
the new station goes on line. Nearly all Raritan Valley trains will stop at
the station, which will be the last eastbound stop before Newark Penn
Station.

That stop, however, will add another two minutes to the ride for most
commuters. An average of 9,550 commuters use the Raritan Valley Line daily.

For commuters boarding at the more distant stations in Hunterdon and western
Somerset counties, the additional time was not welcome news.

Scotch Plains resident Walter Appel suggested that NJ Transit create a "skip
service" similar to the scheduling system used in Chicago, so that
designated trains pass certain stations.

DiSarro said there is some station-skipping during the morning rush hour,
but there is not enough demand to expand it.

"We lost a big chunk of ridership after Sept. 11," DiSarro said. As a
result, addressing capacity problems on other lines would take priority over
adding additional service to the Raritan Valley Line, he said.

While 800 commuters a day are expected to use the Union station, half of
them are expected to be existing commuters from the Roselle Park and
Elizabeth stations, DiSarro said.

But the expectation is that the commuter stop also will be a destination.
Transit officials hope the proximity of Kean University, Schering Plough and
other businesses will prompt some people to leave their cars at home. And
students can get a monthly discount pass to utilize the train.

While ticket prices have not been set for the new station, DiSarro said it
will be similar to Roselle Park, where a monthly commuter ticket to
Manhattan is $137 and an off-peak round trip to New York costs $7.50.

The schedule also is still pending because NJ Transit must first receive
notification from Amtrak on schedule changes that entity could make this
fall. Raritan Valley trains into Newark must cross over Amtrak's heavily
used main lines to drop off passengers. As a result, the opportunities to
"thread" through those tracks are limited, DiSarro said.

The westbound ride is a little easier because only one Amtrak rail line is
used for a brief period, he said.

While DiSarro expects the schedule to be very similar to Roselle Park, where
26 eastbound and a similar number of westbound trains stop daily, the
schedule for the new Union station will not be ready until about Dec. 1.



Gabriel H. Gluck works in the Union County bureau. He can be reached at
ggluck_@_starledger.com or (908) 302-1506.


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railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org

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