Commuters who ride NJ Transit's Midtown Direct service from Short Hills, Millburn or Livingston will lose their one-seat ride to Penn Station New York starting Sunday, Oct. 11.
On weekdays through Saturday, Nov. 14, all Morristown Line, Gladstone Branch and Montclair-Boonton Line trains will terminate at Hoboken Terminal instead of Manhattan. The diversion is the second and final phase of the Portal North Bridge cutover, which transfers the last track from the 116-year-old Portal Bridge over the Hackensack River to a new, higher span.
Weekend service runs as usual.
What's changing
Amtrak and NJ Transit will begin construction work Friday evening, Oct. 9, according to an NJ Transit press release. The new weekday schedule takes effect Sunday, Oct. 11. During the work, trains can operate on only a single track between Newark Penn Station and Secaucus Junction.
The Morristown Line and Gladstone Branch will drop from 148 weekday trains to 139. The Montclair-Boonton Line will go from 64 to 60.
Regular schedules are expected to resume Sunday, Nov. 15, with full normal service returning Monday, Nov. 16. Both dates depend on the completion of safety testing.
How to get to Manhattan
Riders diverted to Hoboken have three weekday options to continue into the city. NJ Transit Hoboken-destination tickets and passes will be cross-honored on PATH trains at Hoboken and 33rd Street stations, on NY Waterway ferry service between Hoboken Terminal and West 39th Street, and on NJ Transit's Route 126 bus to the Port Authority Bus Terminal.
NY Waterway plans to add ferry runs during morning and evening rush hours.
NJ Transit said buying a Hoboken-destination ticket and connecting via PATH or ferry could save riders up to 25 percent per trip compared with a New York-destination ticket, according to an NJ Transit briefing document. A FLEXPASS option offering 20 trips at a 15 percent discount is also on sale during the cutover.
On weekends, monthly, weekly and FLEXPASS holders can use their existing passes for Penn Station service. One-way ticket buyers will need to purchase a Penn Station New York destination ticket for weekend trips.
Tips for the five weeks
NJ Transit and Amtrak urged riders who can work from home to do so during the cutover, according to the agencies' joint press release. NJ Transit President and CEO Kris Kolluri said the five weeks of adjusted schedules will deliver a modern bridge that ends a century of swing-bridge delays on the Northeast Corridor. Additional NJ Transit staff will be stationed at Hoboken Terminal and Secaucus Junction.
Adjusted schedules by line are posted at njtransit.com/portalcutover. A community-built tool at reroutenj.org, created by NJ Transit rider Joe Amditis, lets commuters enter their station and see schedule changes, transfer options and which ticket to buy. Montclair Local reported the tool drew about 24,000 page views during the first cutover earlier this year.
Why it matters
The new Portal North Bridge is a fixed-span structure rising 50 feet over the Hackensack River, doubling the clearance of the old swing bridge. Once the cutover is complete, the original 116-year-old bridge will be permanently retired. The project spans 2.44 miles of the Northeast Corridor and is backed by $766.5 million in Federal Transit Administration funding, part of a $1.56 billion construction contract NJ Transit awarded in October 2021.
Normal Midtown Direct service is expected to resume Nov. 16.
