Northeast Corridor Line to experience ‘minor’ time changes during Amtrak summer track repairs

NJ Transit has announced modified weekday service plans and train schedules for two months this summer during the Amtrak track repair project.

Amtrak is slated to repair tracks at Penn Station in New York from Monday, July 10 through Friday, September 1.

Midtown Direct trains on the Morristown and Gladstone lines will be diverted to Hoboken. Customers who take the Morris and Essex lines will receive a 50 percent discount or more off the Hoboken fare, and will be able to use PATH and ferry services in Hoboken. Discounts will be based on the origin and the destination of the customer’s travel, officials said.

All Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast, Raritan Valley and Montclair-Boonton trains will operate on regular weekday schedules with minor time changes to and from Penn Station.

Bergen, Pascack Valley and Port Jervis Lines will operate on regular weekday schedules, but NJ Transit officials say customers may need to adjust their connections to New York at the Secaucus station.

NJ Transit officials say regular weekend service will remain in effect all summer.

Officials at NJ Transit have placed all the blame for the delays and commuter headaches on Amtrak.

 

“NJ Transit rail customers have been forced to deal with delays, derailments and unreliable service because Amtrak, which owns the tracks our service relies upon, has neglected the maintenance of its critical infrastructure for years,” said NJ Transit officials in a statement to commuters yesterday. “For three-quarters of NJ Transit rail customers, travel patterns will not be modified, including the Trenton to New York Northeast Corridor Line. However, delays on all rail lines, except for the Atlantic City Rail line, are inevitable.”