NEW YORK — Northeast Corridor service for Amtrak, NJ Transit and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority has been interrupted by a pair of power outages today.
The initial issue, with an overhead wire, led to an outage at New York’s Penn Station as of 10:10 a.m. Power was restored by 10:45 a.m., with Amtrak Northeast Corridor and NJ Transit North Jersey Coast and Midtown Direct trains rolling again at approximately 11 a.m. The cause of the incident is under investigation.
Three trains in the Hudson River tunnels were disable; a rescue engine moved them out of the south tube and back to Penn Station by 11:15 a.m., Amtrak spokesman Jason Abrams said.
Another outage was reported at Edison, N.J., at 11:30 a.m., which slowed trains, although they were able to continue operation. A third outage then struck between between New Rochelle, N.Y., and Philadelphia shortly after noon, Abrams said. That affected Amtrak, NJ Transit, and SEPTA service. Power was restored in approximately 15 minutes; the cause of that outage is also under investigation.
SEPTA tweeted that service on its service between Trenton and Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station had been suspended at 11:20 a.m., with that suspension lifted at 12:50 p.m.
Full Amtrak service on the Northeast Corridor resumed by 1:45 p.m., with residual delays of up to two hours; NJ Transit was reporting delays of up to an hour. NJ Transit’s Midtown Direct service to Penn Station has resumed after some trains were diverted to Hoboken. NJ Transit and Port Authority Trans-Hudson buses are honoring NJ Transit rail tickets, as are private carriers.
No Long Island Rail Road trains out of Penn Station were affected, LIRR spokesman Aaron Donovan said.
As a retired power director for the NEC, (Philly to Wash) my bet would be the shitty Richmond power plant crapped out again (hasn’t been right since the day it opened.) or the Metuchen plant in North Jersey kicked off due to too many transmission line cuts. As for rescue engines, what ever diesel is available in Penn Sta. or Sunnyside yard.
Q: what does Amtrak use for a rescue locomotive to pull disabled trains out of the Hudson River tunnels – a P42?
I was unlucky enough to be on the first train to get stuck in the tunnel, having changed to an NYC-bound train at Secaucus. I’ve learned to walk to the rear of the platform, since many people bunch up at the middle of the platform where the stairs are, then proceed to pack the coaches like sardine cans. This was a 10 car train of single level Comet cars. I was fortunate enough to find a center vestibule with only four others standing in it, so I bordered there for the 10 minute trip to NYPenn.
As we entered the tunnel, the train lost lights and ventilation, but continued under power. Just as the train approached the east portal of the tunnel, it stopped. For 50 minutes! Finally, the lights and A/C came on, accompanied by loud cheering, only to go off seconds later. This on and off action continued for several times: nobody cheered.
The train finally moved into the station (whether under it’s own power or towed, I’m not sure). On the platform as we pulled in were several FDNY firemen and EMTs, there to assist a sick passenger, so we had to wait a few more minutes before the car doors opened.
The train crew was excellent. They used the intercom frequently to keep the passengers informed every time they learned something. Also, every few minutes a crew member would walk through the cars asking if everyone was all right or needed help.
John Barlow – My NJT contact said that the usual rescue engine at NYPenn is one of the Empire Service locomotives, since they are equipped with third rail shoes. Years ago, Amtrak installed third rail through the tunnels and into New Jersey (I have no idea how far) for such a rescue situation.