Exploring the Out of Service CNJ Mainline

The CNJ Mainline from NJ to the anthracite fields of PA was an important passenger and freight artery for much of the 20th Century. With the advent of Conrail in the 1970s however, the line became surplus owing to the nearby Lehigh Valley mainline. Surviving as a commuter line, service beyond the small community of High Bridge ceased in 1983, however, the tracks have remained in place, and both NJ Transit and Amtrak have expressed interest in using the ROW.

[@garykuipers2696]

I worked as a trainman for Ross Rowland's High Iron Co. based at Lebanon, NJ. I'm a retired conductor from NJ Transit and remember when there was train service from Phillipsburg east on the Raritan Valley Line. This was a great presentation, thank you.

[@HighIronProductions]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@jackwilliams5474]

Wow, that's amazing! I used to be in the Warren county area and also heard about stories of trains through Green, Blairstown, Johnsonburg, etc..

[@intercityrailpal]

Rode this on a 6 hour all stop mail train in 1966! In daylight hours we did pick up people going to work in Allentown. Open window coaches left Jersey City at 3am. Loss of this mail and packages to GM trucks bankrupted the private passenger service of the CNJ and thousands of others! Thanks bailed out Government Motors!

[@Pensyfan19]

Very good footage! Great to hear that Amtrak may be reutilizing this main line again.

[@robkrasinski6217]

Amtrak is going to use the NS former Lehigh Valley tracks though across NJ, and a bit of the former CNJ in Phillipsburg and over to Easton, PA and back onto the former LV tracks to Bethlehem and Allentown. The Wind Creek casino (formerly Sands) in south Bethlehem on former Bethlehem Steel property would benefit from Amtrak train service.

[@lorumipsum1129]

@@robkrasinski6217it would. They could use one of the massive parking lots for a new station, or utilize the old south side station as one

[@harveywachtel1091]

​@@robkrasinski6217I wonder if they'd name a train The Queen of the Valley and/or the Black Diamond. A couple of friends and I rode tha last run of the Queen of the Valley [that's how it was identified on the tinetable]. One of my companions remarked that she must have been turned into a toad. For a few months after the Aldene Plan went into effect, CRRNJ was required to run a stub train between Easton and Allentown -- something to do with the ICC, I think. I contrived to ride it from Bethlehem to Allentown as part of an odyssey on some now-defunct Reading lines. The consist was one combined coach-baggage car. The conductor was startled to see a passenger and scurried back to the baggage section to don his uniform jacket before returning to collect my fare.

[@_mynewcareer]

Great video. This line travels through some beautiful areas of NJ. Would be cool to see it back in service

[@jackwilliams5474]

100%!

[@kennyspry5189]

Sooooooo sad to see abandoned rail it's like loosing a part of America...

[@jackwilliams5474]

Man they need to get this all going again!

[@denault3985]

Great footage of a historic mainline.

[@PeterT1981]

Very meticulously videoed! Great production value. Thanks for taking such care to craft this informative video

[@de-fault_de-fault]

I ride the last couple hundred active yards of the old CNJ line at the other end (between Cranford and Aldene, before switching onto the Lehigh line) every day. It would be cool to see more of the line put back into service, and I can only assume Amtrak hypothetically using it would be occasion for improving some of the pinch points that can limit RVL service currently.

[@johns9571]

Which pinch points do you refer to? It's interesting how much of the ROW east of Aldene has been taken over by neighboring businesses.

[@jackwilliams5474]

Shame he didn't reply. I too was curious about this.@@johns9571

[@DelcoImagery]

Wow this documentary was incredible your abandoned railroad videos are top notch!

[@dennisb-trains23]

Very nicely done. I love Railroad history from all over. Thanks for sharing 👍

[@jackwilliams5474]

Same!

[@cats0182]

Always tough for me to see these abandoned rights-of-way. Nice to hear that NJT and AMTRAK know the tracks are there. I doubt that I'll see a video of the reopening of the line in my lifetime. Money just ain't there.

[@HighIronProductions]

Amtrak has the goal to reopen this route by 2035 as part of its Allentown to New York route.

[@hiltondrivef8458]

These lines are Not abandoned they are only out of service there's a difference if it's abandoned the tracks will be torn up when out of service there is vegetation growth trees weeds

[@Live2ride2live54321]

@@hiltondrivef8458 that’s not exactly true.. there’s tracks left that are completely abandoned and disconnected from main lines for miles. Some track was pulled up, but there’s still some left. Therefore it’s not out of service. It’s still abandoned.

[@robkrasinski6217]

Amtrak is going to use the NS Lehigh Line (former Lehigh Valley and Conrail) and the part of the Lehigh Line that NS, Conrail Shared Assets, CSX, and NJT use, not the NJT Raritan Valley line. NJT was talking about extending service to Hampton, but they would have to build a station there. It would make more sense to go to Bloomsbury to a new park and ride lot off of I-78. There is land on the south side of I-78 next to the tracks that could be used for a new park and ride lot and a new station with a platform. That would at least bring the NJT train closer to Phillipsburg again, but if Amtrak has service on the more direct ex-LV NS line, then people who live in Easton and Phillipsburg would more likely take an Amtrak train to NY. The out of service portions of the ex-CNJ that haven't seen a rail vehicle since Dec 1983 look really rusted and the ties are probably shot. The tracks would probably need to be upgraded before NJT trains could use them and crossing signals fixed or replaced with newer ones. And the line would probably need to be signaled, is the line signaled between High Bridge and Raritan? That section is only used on weekdays a few trains a day, a few morning trains inbound, a midday train, and a few evening trains westbound. Weekend and holiday service is east of Raritan only.

[@northpennvalleysteamrailroad]

Nice video! Good that it isn’t abandoned!

[@Rexyboygamer-Vlogs]

I remember going to this place called blueberry hill, and while we were parking, I saw some tracks along side the road. I checked them out, seemed like they were abandoned for a good while as they had massive pine trees growing in them. I was so excited I forgot to look for a date on the rails.

[@jackwilliams5474]

Where was this?

[@armandoperez7967]

This line should definitely be restored to railroad service. I have had enough of lines ripped up and turned into trails. We know that once they get ripped apart that it becomes thousands if not millions of times harder to restore them for rail use.

[@robkrasinski6217]

Which is why service from Bethlehem to Quakertown and even south of Quakertown will probably never happen. bethlehem to north of Quakertown is now rail trails. South of Quakertown two short lines operate freight service, East Penn from Quakertown to Telford, and Penn Northeastern south of Telford.

[@armandoperez7967]

@@robkrasinski6217 It’s true that there is virtually no chance of trails having rail service restored along them. The rail trail legislation says that the right to restore rail service is guaranteed if justified but we know for a fact that this is not true. It’s a shame.

[@jackwilliams5474]

I agree.@@armandoperez7967

[@robertdaniels1269]

And the hikers and bicyclists get it for free and view it as their birthright.

[@armandoperez7967]

@@robertdaniels1269 I hope that the highway and trail lobbies don’t get their way. They would love to convert all rail lines to trails.

[@jimmimlitsch3425]

The tracks are still in place in alpha as well. A couple years ago I was waiting for medication for my dog and we went over to crestwood park. Followed the line almost out to the CNJ ‘s bridge over main st. Tons of ticks on both the dog and I.

[@StephenCarlBaldwin]

Wonderfully evocative.

[@TheManwhorailfansrarely]

It used to stretch all the way to Scranton PA when the cnj had it before it was cut to Phillipsburg and then high bridge there’s more parts of the original pre Aldene connection cnj mainline in roselle pk

[@doctorbob85]

Very nicely done.

[@NikonF5user]

I'm constantly sickened by how many rail lines are abandoned or unused in the US; all I see is countless opportunities to get cars and trucks off the roads. I keep up hope that US passenger rail will see a resurgence in the face of the realities of climate change...

[@HighIronProductions]

Couldn't agree more. Thankfully it seems that this line may still have a future as part of Amtrak's Allentown - NYC service.

[@jackwilliams5474]

Agreed.

[@cnj1133]

May I ask what camera you use? The quality is incredible!

[@MidnightAspec]

That was great!

[@bobbender2922]

Total professionalism here

[@HighIronProductions]

Thank you!

[@CrossOfBayonne]

The 4-6-2 on my pfp later ran this route after seeing use on the Southern Division towards the Atlantic City, This mainline unfortunately past the NJ border is a shadow of its formerself and hopefully if time comes service should be restored.

[@jackwilliams5474]

I hope so!

[@geertmarien9076]

Bravo!

[@johns9571]

NS has flipped a section of rail just west of the route 579 grade crossing (recorded August 2022). I forget if this means the line is "out of service," "embargoed" or "abandoned." With this being the case NJT should start looking at restoring service to Bloomsbury with a station at Hampton. I would suggest going all the way to P'burg but this would involve possible messy negotiations with NS. Thanks for the excellent video.

[@HighIronProductions]

They do this so they don't have to maintain the crossings. The track is just out of service.

[@jjackomin]

I really enjoyed your video but I would recommend that you leave the text up just a little longer so us old farts can read it all. 😂

[@justinodonnell3793]

Yes. I agree.

[@Live2ride2live54321]

Just pause it! That’s what I do

[@jjackomin]

@@Live2ride2live54321 Gee Kyle, why didn't I think of that. SMH.

[@jackwilliams5474]

Agreed, but I just paused there.

[@jackwilliams5474]

@@jjackomin Well, pause then. It's not a big deal and no need to be sarcastic with Kyle. That's the magic of YT, pause rewind FF, whatever.

[@vishal915]

Wow! Atleast NJT can re extend passenger service to Ludlow or at the very least go up to Hampton where the CNJ once met the Lackawanna at Tempe junction and rebuild those stations it with high level platforms. Great drone footage! Be nice if passenger service can return to Easton but so far NJT is only willing to go as far as Alpha due to lack of parking at the old Philipsburg Station.

[@HighIronProductions]

Amtrak plans to use the route for their Allentown service, so the tracks should return to use at some point in the nearish future.

[@robkrasinski6217]

No, Amtrak will only use the ex-LV Lehigh Line. For NJT, it would make more sense to go to Bloomsbury to a new park and ride off of I-78 that could be built on empty land by the tracks. That way, they wouldn't have to enter the NS Lehigh Line which Amtrak would run on.

[@DerekLiang]

The railroad crossing needs to be replaced to use the Electric bells and new lights and it also needs to replace the tracks because it is old already before the line is clean and every train can go on that route.

[@user-ff2iz5qc6l]

I didn’t realize that so much trackage was still in place. I don’t venture into jersey that much (the road signage is horrible for directions last time I drove over there). What part was removed because of I78?

[@NJtoAzMountainBiker]

I know you are located in North Jersey, but any idea as to what is going on with the former CNJ “Blue Comet” route in Ocean County. (Whiting area). I know they paved over the crossings in a few areas then they started to rehab the line for sand transportation out of Clayton sand pit located just over the county line in Burlington County. Also where does the Belvedere (Bel-Del) connect at to this line or does it?

[@HighIronProductions]

From what I've heard this line will supposedly get business once the Gateway Tunnel project commences on the Northeast Corridor. Either they'll be hauling the excavated material out or bringing material in. This was supposed to start several years ago but was nixed under Christie, hence the rehab being done, but no traffic starting. The Bel-Del connection to this line is the still active bridge between Easton and Phillipsburg used by NS to access the Portland Secondary.

[@vondumozze738]

@@HighIronProductions I live right by the junction of the old CNJ Barnegat branch and Southern division AKA The Blue Comet line. They started clearing the brush and trees in 2006. All the bridges and grade crossings are complete, except for crossing gates in Lakehurst. After 15 years I don't know how much sand there is left to be mined, but the trucks run pretty regular over the roads and tear them up quite a bit.

[@PowerTrain611]

@@vondumozze738 I know the area quite well. I grew up in forked river and remember seeing that restoration underway a few years ago before I left the state. Figures he was/is part of the hold up...

[@qjtvaddict]

That line is perfect for high speed rail 😂

[@jasonligo895]

Great video. Very peaceful to watch. Does I-78 occupy any of the former ROW or did it does cross over or through?

[@brownpcsuncedu]

Just east of Bloomsbury, I-78 crosses over the CNJ. The crossing is about .2 of a mile east of the middle of exit 7 (about halfway from exit 7 to the Bloomsbury "rest area", which is really more of a parking lot). I was a little surprised by the statement in the video (at 5:35) that the CNJ was severed west of Bloomsbury "to allow construction of I-78". It's not that hard to trace the original CNJ ROW west of Bloomsbury on Google Maps, and I-78 doesn't use any of it. The only place the original CNJ line comes in contact with I-78 is south of Alpha, about .2 of a mile east (along I-78) of the place where I-78 crosses underneath the current Lehigh Line (originally LV). At that place, I-78 crosses the original CNJ ROW, but there's no sign of a crossing (bridge or tunnel) at that location. It's possible, of course, that that's exactly the point-the original CNJ may have been combined with the LV through there precisely so that I-78 would only *need* to construct one crossing instead of two. Certainly, at about that time, Conrail was doing a lot of mixing and matching of the parallel LV and CNJ lines in the Phillipsburg area and farther west, trying to retain the better of the two parallel lines and dump the worse one, so it's likely that the highway folks wouldn't have needed to lean too hard on Conrail to get them to combine the lines as far east as Bloomsbury. It should be noted, just in passing, that although the former CNJ is abandoned from west of Bloomsbury *to* Phillipsburg, the Lehigh Line *through* Phillipsburg and the Delaware River crossing uses the former CNJ line, not the former LV. (The CNJ bridge over the Delaware was a substantially better bridge than the LV's, which is why the CNJ's bridge is still in use and the LV's bridge has been abandoned.)

[@allenkramer2143]

@@brownpcsuncedu Correct, also the culvert over County Rt. 519 was removed in Pohatcong Township.

[@jackwilliams5474]

Thanks for that detailed reply! Always appreciate the insight!@@brownpcsuncedu

[@brianfalzon6739]

Wonder if this line will be used again?

[@HighIronProductions]

NJ Transit has expressed long-term interest in using it again, and Amtrak has included a route from NYC to Allentown in their 2035 plan which is slated to utilize this trackage.

[@brianfalzon6739]

@@HighIronProductions I see

[@CrossOfBayonne]

They have thought about restoring it somehow towards Allentown

[@brianfalzon6739]

@@CrossOfBayonne how do you know about that?

[@brianfalzon6739]

@@CrossOfBayonne that would be awesome.

[@johns9571]

I recently visited the Ludlow Station Road crossing and the Valley Station Road Crossing. It seems at milepost 60, just of the Ludlow crossing, NJT has installed a relatively new bracket to hold a PTC box. Is reactivation in the plans? The ROW is in pretty good shape east of Ludlow Station Road (NJT maintenance.)

[@robkrasinski6217]

NJT should extend service to Bloomsbury and build a new park and ride off of I-78. That would bring the train several miles closer to Phillipsburg than the Annandale station off of I-78 and Rt. 22. But, a drive past Bloomsbury to Annandale is more direct than the ex-CNJ railroad which goes over the mountain. Amtrak plans to use the ex-LV NS Lehigh Line for the Allentown to NY service.

[@johns9571]

@@robkrasinski6217 There was a proposal a while back to build the Bethlehem Township park and ride on Rte. 173 north of I-78 by Vliet Farm Road. Unfortunately the proposal was deemed too expensive. I-78 goes over Jugtown Mountain; the CNJ mostly goes around it increasing the mileage.. The AMTRAK proposal I saw used the CNJ ROW with stops at Westfield and Somerville both of which are already ADA accessible. NS has been very resistant to give AMTRAK trackage rights without AMTRAK making costly track improvements. The Bethlehem Twp. park and ride would have required the rehabilitation of roughly 4 miles of existing track and construction of a new Station at Hampton as well as the park and ride stop, but again, deemed too expensive.

[@PowerTrain611]

I rode a service from Roselle Park to High Bridge once, took my bike with me and rode to Phillipsburg from there. It was a nice ride, train and bike... but man, some of those hills right outside of the station were crazy! I was overtaking cars! This was with a single gear BMX bike, too... that was in my younger years... I think it was something like a 3 hour bike ride in the summer... would have been nice to take the train the whole way... 😅Couldn't do that again if I tried. 3:06 Is that C&S as in Colorado and Southern on that switch lock? Interesting... that's a long way from home!

[@DerekLiang]

And the Dr (drive) still gets a old bell.

[@DerekLiang]

There is no avenue in PA ( Pennsylvania).

[@crysajb-iq1hd]

X PING I just saw a University stadium. 1 road back.

[@vondumozze738]

Great video of my old stomping grounds. I wouldl like to rail bike what's not in use anymore.

[@ocsrc]

This should be reactivated for service to Allentown

[@HighIronProductions]

This is the plan. Amtrak's service plan calls for stops at Somerton and Easton, which would require it to take this route.

[@kevinwong6588]

@@HighIronProductions NJT can run interstate (joint through service on the Port Jervis Line).

[@DerekLiang]

And it was too old because of the 20th.

[@qjtvaddict]

Umm Amtrak these tracks are useless for long distance travel

[@HighIronProductions]

The Amtrak service that would use this would be NYC to Allentown. The right of way would obviously be rehabbed before trains could use it.

[@mattrasp1615]

How are we suppose to read all that in the beginning in 25 seconds? Cmon

[@Live2ride2live54321]

This magical technological creation of the “pause” button

[@frankjanvari8650]

i don't mind if Norfolk southern and nj transit share this line but don't let amtrak fool you take a look at the Atlantic city line two years after restoring passenger service amtrak pulled out leaving nj transit holding the bag amtrak dosent care about anyone but themselves!!

[@jackwilliams5474]

Wait, there still is service to AC right?

[@Brianrockrailfan]

hope fully trains use the rail line again will the rail line have to be rebuilt ? 🛤😢

[@HighIronProductions]

The track is maintained on the NJT side at a basic level. NS doesn't appear to be maintaining their side. It will likely require almost total track replacement for passenger service.

[@joeruiz4010]

​@High Iron Productions In the Mid-2000s, Norfolk Southern wanted to take full ownership of all the old CNJ rail line west of High Bridge for full time siding usage. They had plans to make storage facilities and service sheds. NJT and the New Jersey State Government rejected that proposal, outright. They should've just let it go through.