Midtown Direct Riders Go to Hoboken Through Nov. 14 as NJ Transit Moves the Last Track Onto the New Portal North Bridge

If you ride NJ Transit's Midtown Direct into Manhattan, Tuesday is the first full workweek test of the new routine. Weekday Midtown Direct trains on the Morristown Line, Gladstone Branch and Montclair-Boonton Line are running to Hoboken Terminal instead of New York Penn Station through Saturday, Nov. 14, NJ Transit said.

The reason is the Portal North Bridge. Amtrak and NJ Transit began moving the final track off the old Portal Bridge over the Hackensack River, a swing bridge that opened in 1910, and onto the new span on Oct. 9. Temporary schedules took effect Sunday, Oct. 11, and the cutover weekday schedule started Monday.

The squeeze is real. While the work goes on, trains can use only a single track between Newark and Secaucus, NJ Transit said. Northeast Corridor and North Jersey Coast Line riders will see fewer weekday trains into Penn Station, and nearly every line except the Atlantic City Rail Line is running on a special schedule. The payoff is a fixed bridge that sits about 50 feet above the river, so it no longer has to swing open for boats, a weak spot that has delayed Northeast Corridor trains for years.

To get people across the Hudson, NJ Transit is cross-honoring rail tickets and passes on PATH between Hoboken and 33rd Street, on NY Waterway ferries between Hoboken and West 39th Street, and on the NJ Transit 126 bus to the Port Authority Bus Terminal. On weekends, Midtown Direct trains still run straight to Penn Station. The agency said extra staff are posted at Hoboken, Secaucus and Penn Station, and it suggests traveling before 7 a.m. or after 9 a.m., and before 4 p.m. or after 7 p.m., if your schedule allows.

Regular schedules are expected to return Sunday, Nov. 15, once safety testing is finished, NJ Transit said. Until then, check the temporary timetables at njtransit.com/portalcutover before you head out.

Source: NJ Transit; NJ Transit and Amtrak.

Photo: Olegnaumov / Wikimedia Commons (public domain, CC0), cropped.