24-07-27 PHOTOS: Long Branch

My local NRHS Chapter does a good job organizing a wide range of informal events throughout the year, giving associates the ability to get out of the hose and socialize. Unfortunately my busy schedule prevents me from attending many of these, however in July 2024 I jumped at the chance to take the New Jersey Coast Line down to Long Branch from Pennsauken via Rahway. I had only ever ridden the NJCL once back in 2006, and that was only to Red Bank. This trip would also provide and opportunity to take NEC and UNION interlocking photos at Rahway and eventually connect to an Amtrak train back to Baltimore via New York Penn Station. You can find the full set of photos here ( mirror ).

The trip would start out from the Pennsauken Transportation Center, taking the NJT RiverLINE to Trenton, then an NEC train to Rahway. I got to the Pennsauken TC early enough to catch a Philly bound Atlantic City Line train make its station stop with GP40PH-2B #4215. It's not uncommon for ACRL trains to "meet" RiverLINE DMU's on the ground level Bordentown Secondary track, but this time southbound NJT #3502 didn't quite make it before #4215 and Comet V cab car #6018 pulled away. 

My group's DMU would be #3506, seen here arriving at the Pennsauken TC.

After purchasing tickets we got down to the eastbound platform to catch an arriving southbound Regional train with ACS-86 #650 on Track #4, while the FAIR interlocking 1AE signal displayed a Limited Clear for a northbound Amtrak Regional.



The Regional was followed on Track #4 by a westbound NJT Corridor Line train with ALP-46 #6001 while the northbound Regional with ACS-86 #660, arrived on Track #1. During their dwell, the pair was split by a southbound Acela Express trainset with power cars #2024 and #2021, on Track #3 before #660 ultimately departed past the Limited Clear signal indication to cross over to Track #2.

Our train to Rahway would arrive on the eastbound high level track with split level cab car #7017. At Rahway the power was revealed to be ALP-46 #4604.

Controlled by a staffed tower until 2009, UNION interlocking is the junction of the NEC and North Jersey Coast Line, aka the New York and Long Branch. It features a trio of flying connecting tracks with one dropping down and vanishing in the middle of the main NEC tracks.

NJT seems to have a thing for scheduling "non-connections" and in the case of the NJCL, the arriving eastbound NEC train is scheduled into Rahway a minute before the departure of the westbound NJCL train, forcing anybody heading from points west to the shore to add a pointless extra hour to their trip time. There did exist a convenient connection to head back to Trenton however with ALP-45 #4515 powering a westbound local.

While lingering on the Track A platform, a northbound Acela Express trainset with power cars #2036 and #2014 blasted through the statin at high speed.

Another iconic feature of Rahway and UNION interlocking is the combination signal bridge/cantilever at the west end of the island platform. Here is a video showing a southbound Acela on track #2 with power cars #2015 and #2010 and the resulting aspect progression on UNION's 2W signal. Due to the high speed of the Acela and the short signal blocks between Rahway and Metropark you can see it change front Stop and Proceed to Approach then to Advance Approach.

Here a doubleheaded southbound Regional with sibling ACS-86 locomotives #618 and #617 leading.



If that wasn't interesting enough, the doubleheader was followed up by a three way meet between northbound trains where an NJT NJCL local on the slow Track A is overtaken by northbound Acela Express Train #2248 on express Track #2, that itself had just overtaken late running northbound Vermonter Train 54 on semi-express Track #1, which then proceeds to overtake the same NJT local as it slows for a Rahway stop. NJT power is ALP-45 #4507, Acela Train 2248 was led by power car #2035 and the Vermonter was powered by ACS-86 #663.



Other action at Rahway included a northbound NJT NEC express with ALP-46 #4654, a northbound Keystone with Metroliner cab car #9646 and ACS-86 #629.

After an hour our NJCL train arrived on Track B with ALP-46 #4624 leading and a Medium Clear on the 5W signal indicating a diverging route onto the New York and Long Branch, RR.

We departed just in time to see the NJT NECL train from Trenton arrive and miss the connection.

Of course with only hourly weekend service to the shore points, the train was absolutely packed and I had to stand in the vestibule.

Along the way I got video of the new Raritan River bridge being constructed between Perth Amboy and South Amboy.



At Long Branch the electrification ends and, despite purchasing dual mode locomotives for this very service, NJT still makes people switch trains to continue to the end of the line at Bay Head. Here the train my group arrived on heads for the yard with Comet V cab car #6015 while the shuttle, with DUAL MODE ALP-45 #4535, passes ALP-45 #4511 and ALP-46 #4619 in the yard.

At this point it was time for lunch at a Mexican place across the street from the rather modest station. When I was done I saw that NJT PL42AC #4019 was hanging off the platform what what looked like the next Bay Haad Shuttle departure.

I was able to make it down to the Bath St grade crossing in time to catch #4019's departure past ALP-46 #4643 and ALP-45 #4510 in the south yard and cab cars #6023 and #7023 in the north yard.

In fact the North Yard was somewhat notable for being the site of a recent derailment where a sleeping engineer ran through the buffer stop and impacted the north support of BATH interlocking's westbound signal gantry. The structure was "temporarily" fixed through the application of two wooden poles, which I am sure will be in place for decades to come.

After the westbound shuttle's departure, the eastbound arrived with split level cab car #7053 leading and dual mode ALP-45 #4532 running behind. Despite the whole DUAL MODE(!) feature, the NJT would still force the passengers to change trains.

The next NJCL train from New York arrived behind ALP-46 #4651 and went directly into the yard so that another trainset could pull out and take the Bay Head passengers the rest of the way.

At Manhattan Transfer my eastbound NJCL train raced an eastbound Mid-Town direct with ALP-46 #4606 on the adjacent M&E tracks. It was signaled ahead of us and began to pull away until NJT #4630 and its train blocked the view.

Arriving at Penn Station I found a wayward CitiBike in the vestibule of the NJCL train, I assume having made the round trip to Long Branch. Power on my eastbound NJCL train was ALP-46 #4651.

After a brief layover I ran into Amtrak ACS-86 #623 and ALP-46 #4601, previously spotted at Trenton earlier in the day, while en-route to my southbound Acela departure featuring power car #2019.

At Wilmington Electric SHoppes I passed by some brand new sibling ALC-42 Chargers #360, #359 and #355, being towed behind Amtrak GP38-2 #726.

Sunset over the Gunpowder River.

Last photo of the day is Acela power car #2014 departing the BWI Airport Rail Station.

That's all for now. Check back next week for a few minutes along the NEC at Philly's Columbia Ave.