Ridgefield Park station

Last updated
Ridgefield Park
Ridgefield Park Station.jpg
General information
Location1 Station Plaza
Ridgefield Park, New Jersey 07660
Owned by New York Central
Line(s) West Shore Railroad
New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad
New York, Ontario and Western Railway
Platforms1 side platform
Tracks3
Other information
Station code1077 (Erie Railroad) [1]
History
Opened1872;151 years ago (1872) [2]
ClosedDecember 10, 1959;63 years ago (December 10, 1959) [3]
June 30, 1966;57 years ago (June 30, 1966) (NYS&W) [4]
RebuiltAugust 20, 1927;96 years ago (August 20, 1927) [5]
ElectrifiedNot electrified
Former services
Preceding station New York Central Railroad Following station
Highland Falls West Shore Railroad
Main Line
Weehawken
Terminus
West View Little Ferry
toward Weehawken
Preceding station New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad Following station
Bogota
toward Stroudsburg
Main Line Little Ferry

Ridgefield Park station, also known as West Shore Station, was a railroad station in Ridgefield Park, New Jersey, at the foot of Mount Vernon Street served by the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad (NYSW) and the West Shore Railroad, a division of New York Central (NYCRR). [6] [7] The New York, Ontario and Western Railway (NYO&W) had running rights along the West Shore and sometimes stopped at Ridgefield Park. [8] First opened in 1872 it was one of three passenger stations in the village, the others being the Little Ferry station to the south and Westview station to the north. (Secondary sources note a later opening date.) Service on the West Shore Railroad began in 1883. The station house, built at a cost $100,000 opened in 1927. [9] Southbound service crossed Overpeck Creek and continued to terminals on the Hudson River waterfront where there was connecting ferry service across the Hudson River to Manhattan. [9] Northbound near Bogota the parallel NYSW and West Shore lines diverge and continue into northern New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and upstate New York. Passenger service ended in 1966.

Contents

History

In 1866, the Ridgefield Park Railroad (a predecessor to West Shore), was established to create a right of way (ROW) along foot the western slope of the Hudson Palisades parallel to the Hackensack River from Ridgefield Park to Marion Junction, where it could use the Bergen Hill Cut to the Pennsylvania Railroad Depot on the Hudson Waterfront in Jersey City. In 1873 the Jersey City & Albany Railroad (another predecessor to the West Shore) incorporated the original Ridgefield Park Railroad ROW into its projected line. The West Shore instead built the Weehawken Tunnel (at the southern end of what became North Bergen Yard) in conjunction with the opening of Weehawken Terminal. It opened its station in Ridgefield Park in 1883. [10] NYC's service was discontinued in 1959. [11]

The New Jersey Midland Railway (a predecessor to the NYSW) built a line through the Ridgefields in 1872. [2] [10] [12] [13] It joined the Erie Railroad Northern Branch at Granton Junction near Babbitt, and reached the community of New Durham. With a similar intention to reach a terminal on the Hudson River, in 1873 it built the Hudson Connecting Railroad which ran south to West End Junction, just north of Marion Junction, with access to Erie's Long Dock Tunnel and Pavonia Terminal. [14] Passenger service on the NYC's West Shore Railroad ended in 1959, having been truncated to West Haverstraw in 1958. Passenger service on the NYSW made use of the West Shore's Ridgefield Park station to Pavonia Terminal until it was retracted to Susquehanna Transfer (near the point now under New Jersey Route 495) and eventually terminated in 1966.

Status and future use

CSX Transportation's River Line and the NYS&W both operate freights along the rail lines that pass the station. NYS&W maintains a small yard in the village. [15]

The station house has become a commercial building. [16] It has been recommended for historic designation by the county's historical agency. [17] and is a very popular location for train watchers.

The CSX bridge over Overpeck Creek was replaced by a two-track swing bridge in 2005. [18] [19] In 2015, the NYS&W Bridge 10.73 was slated for replacement due to its poor condition, [20] [21] [22] but as of 2017 work had not begun. [23] Before it could, the bridge collapsed in 2018, causing a minor derailment. [24] Work commenced in 2019. [25]

Numerous studies to restore passenger service have been conducted, but not materialized. [26] The location is a potential station of New Jersey Transit Rail Operations's proposed Passaic–Bergen–Hudson Transit Project which would be called Mount Vernon Street. [27]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Ridgefield is the first township in Bergen County which the traveler enters in passing up the Palisades. His first impressions are much like those of old Hendrick Hudson in speaking of a wider extent of country: "A very good land to fall in with, and a pleasant land to see." The valley of the Hackensack invited early settlers in the seventeenth century, and the valley of the Overpeck Creek, a navigable arm of the Hackensack, also attracted settlers quite as early in this direction. Sloops and schooners can pass up this creek nearly to the northern boundary of the township. Ridgefield is bounded on the north by Englewood, on the east by the Hudson, on the south by Hudson County, and on the west by the Hackensack River. The southern boundary is less than two miles in extent, and the northern less than four, and the length of the township from north to south does not exceed four miles. Bellman's Creek, forming part of the southern boundary, the Hackensack, the Overpeck, the Hudson, with more than a dozen other smaller streams and rivulets, bountifully supply the whole township with water. From the western border of the Palisades the land descends to the Overpeck, forming a most beautiful valley, with the land again rising to a high ridge midway between the Overpeck and the Hackensack. From this long ridge, extending far to the north beyond this township, it took its name of Ridgefield.

The New York, Susquehanna and Western, formerly the Midland Railroad, the Jersey City and Albany Railroad, and the Northern Railway of New Jersey—all running northward through the township— afford ample railroad accommodations. The Susquehanna enters the township at Bellman's Creek, and the Northern at about one hundred feet south of the creek, and at a point north and east of the Susquehanna. The Albany road in this locality is not yet constructed, diverging at present from the track of the Susquehanna between Little Ferry and Bogota stations. It has, however, an independent line projected and now under construction to New York City.

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References

  1. "List of Station Names and Numbers". Jersey City, New Jersey: Erie Railroad. May 1, 1916. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
  2. 1 2 Catlin, George (February 1873), A glance at Ridgefield Park, N.J., its past, present and future ..., hdl:2027/loc.ark:/13960/t0vq36444
  3. "Weehawken-Haverstraw Line to Chug Last Mile Tonight". The Asbury Park Evening Press . December 10, 1959. p. 32. Retrieved January 3, 2020 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  4. "Susquehanna Commuter Service Ends". The Herald-News. Passaic, New Jersey. July 1, 1966. p. 1. Retrieved October 23, 2020 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  5. "Ridgefield Park's New Railroad Depot Opened With Parade and Dinner". The Bergen Evening Record. Hackensack, New Jersey. August 22, 1927. p. 5. Retrieved February 23, 2019 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  6. Kaminski, Edward S. (2010), NEW YORK, SUSQUEHANNA & WESTERN RAILROAD IN NEW JERSEY, Arcadia Publishing, ISBN   978-0-7385-7367-0
  7. Rose-McEntee, Donna E. (2003), Ridgefield Park, Arcadia Publishing, ISBN   9780738512235
  8. Bux, Joe (2009), The New York, Ontario and Western Railway, Arcadia Publishing, ISBN   9780738562629
  9. 1 2 Agnes, Kristen (March 27, 2015). "Mount Vernon Street train station in Ridgefield Park was a popular place for commuters". northjersey.com. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  10. 1 2 Ridgefield Park 1685-1985 (PDF), 1985, p. 16, archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04, retrieved 2016-01-22
  11. "Abandoned 36 Years Ago, the West Shore Rail Line Creeps Closer Toward Revival". The New York Times. June 25, 1995.
  12. K., Henry. "History of Bogota". Town of Bogota. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
  13. Catlin, George L. (1872). "Homes on the Midland for New York Business Men". New York: J. W. Pratt via HathiTrust Digital Library.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  14. Mohowski, Robert E. (2003), The New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad, JHU Press, ISBN   9780801872228
  15. VILLAGE OF RIDGEFIELD PARK v. NEW YORK SUSQUEHANNA AND WESTERN RAILWAY CORPORATION(Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate DivisionDecember 2, 1998 - February 17, 1999)("In 1991 the railroad sold its Little Ferry Yard and railroad terminal to CSX Rail Systems (CSX) for 21 million dollars so it could "benefit from additional rail traffic from the CSX operations into the Ridgefield site." After the sale, CSX refused to allow the NYS&W to continue its refueling and light-maintenance operations at the Little Ferry site at the Borough of Ridgefield. This required the railroad to relocate its so-called "light-maintenance" facility to its approximately 125-foot right-of-way located in the Village, where some side-track was added."). Text
  16. "1 Station Plaza". Cityfeet.com. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  17. New Jersey Historic Preservation Office (April 26, 2016). "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places: Bergen County". Archived from the original on August 10, 2016.
  18. Tofani, Anthony R. (June 20, 2005). "Little Ferry, NJ - Then & Now". gsmrr. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
  19. "CSX - Overpeck Creek Bridge (1901)". Bridgehunter. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
  20. "CSX - Overpeck Creek Bridge/NYS&W Overpeck Creek Bridge". Bridgehunter. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
  21. Maag, Christopher (February 4, 2015). "Train bridge over Overpeck Creek in Ridgefield Park to be replaced". The Record. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
  22. "NJDOT awards $5.1 million in rail and community-based grants in Bergen and Passaic counties" (Press release). New Jersey Department of Transportation. February 4, 2015. Retrieved January 23, 2016. NJDOT also is awarding a $4.3 million grant to replace the rail bridge spanning the Overpeck Creek in Ridgefield Park, Bergen County. The bridge serves as a critical link for freight rail in the region with an average of 25,000 rail cars traversing the bridge each year. It was originally built in the early 1900s with three spans – a north approach, a south approach, and a center span. The north and south approaches were rehabilitated in 1985. This project will replace all three spans with a new steel bent system and steel superstructure, as well as new steel and concrete abutments on the north and south sides.
  23. "Work on century-old rail bridge to begin this summer".
  24. Tate, Curtis (July 28, 2018). "Susquehanna railroad bridge collapses under train in Ridgefield Park". NorthJersey.com.
  25. "NYS&W Railway".
  26. Maag, Christopher (November 29, 2015). "A train delay for the ages: boosting service in Bergen County among stalled plans". The Record. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  27. "Passaic Bergen Hudson Transit Project". Projects & Reports. NJ Transit. Retrieved February 26, 2021.

40°51′24″N74°1′40″W / 40.85667°N 74.02778°W / 40.85667; -74.02778