The 1,900 daily riders of the line have had to seek alternate means of transport since last month, and will continue to do so for the next few months. NJ Transit’s contractors have been on the line since then, working on PTC installation. A senior NJT official tells Trains that this week saw four separate crews working at Cherry Hill, Hammonton, and two other locations on the line.
The complete shutdown enabled the passenger equipment to be used on other NJ Transit rail lines to hasten PTC installation on locomotives and cab control cars.
Oct. 14 will see NJ Transit reductions in train service, additional stops, and temporary shutdowns on other lines as well. The Morris and Essex Gladstone line from Summit to Gladstone will see weekend PTC installation line shutdowns with a bus shuttle. The 2.7-mile Princeton, N.J., “Dinky” is to shut down completely. That branch will not need PTC due to its one-train operation. The two Arrow III mu cars used are badly needed during the rush to complete full PTC equipment on the 282 NJ Transit locomotives and cab cars by the end of the year.
The Atlantic City line, along with the other 11, is expected to return to normal scheduling sometime after New Year as crew work toward the mandated Dec. 31 Federal Railroad Administration compliance deadline.
