Elizabeth station (Central Railroad of New Jersey)

Elizabeth is a disused train station in Elizabeth, New Jersey. It was built by the Central Railroad of New Jersey (CNJ) in 1893. It is adjacent to NJ Transit's Elizabeth station on the Northeast Corridor. That station was built and owned by the Pennsylvania Railroad; in the era of private operation passengers could transfer between the two. The CNJ right-of-way in Elizabeth is unused, and passenger trains which served the former CNJ mainline (NJT's Raritan Valley Line service) bypass Elizabeth via the Aldene Connection on their way to Newark Penn Station. The station has been renovated and used as commercial space.

For the current NJ Transit station in Elizabeth, see Elizabeth station (NJ Transit).

ELIZABETH
The former Central Railroad of New Jersey station, with the current Elizabeth station in the background.
Location	14 Julian Place, Elizabeth, New Jersey 07028
Coordinates	40.667149°N 74.216448°W / 40.667149; -74.216448
Platforms	2
Tracks	4
History
Opened	January 1, 1839[1]
Closed	August 6, 1978[2]
Former services
Preceding station Conrail Following station Elmora toward Cranford Bayonne Scoot Elizabethport toward East 33rd Street Preceding station Central Railroad of New Jersey Following station Plainfield toward Phillipsburg Main Line Jersey City Terminus Elmora toward Phillipsburg Elizabethport toward Jersey City Roselle–Roselle Park toward Somerville Somerville – Jersey City Local West 8th Street toward Jersey City Elmora toward Somerville Elizabethport toward Jersey City Preceding station Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Following station Plainfield toward Chicago Main Line Jersey City Terminus Plainfield toward Philadelphia Philadelphia – Jersey City Local
Elizabeth Station
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Show map of Union County, New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Show map of the United States
Location	Morris Ave., and Broad St., Elizabeth, New Jersey
Coordinates	40°40′4″N 74°12′54″W
Area	1.3 acres (0.53 ha)
Built	1893 (1893)
Architect	Bruce Price
Architectural style	Roanesque, Victorian Romanesque
MPS	Operating Passenger Railroad Stations TR
NRHP reference No.	84002825[3]
Added to NRHP	September 29, 1984

Major named trains

The station was on the CNJ's main line and was also used B&O and Reading Railway trains which terminated the CNJ's Jersey City terminal, where ferry service to New York was available.

• Baltimore and Ohio (routes west beyond Washington, DC):
  • Capitol Limited, Cincinnatian, Columbian, Metropolitan Special, National Limited and others
• Central Railroad of New Jersey & Reading Railway (route to Bethlehem, Allentown, Reading and Harrisburg):
  • Harrisburg Special and Queen of the Valley
• Reading Railway (route to West Trenton and Philadelphia):
  • Crusader and Wall Street

Status

The CNJ station suffered from a freight train wreck on November 4, 1972, when a boxcar derailed and pulled several other cars into the canopy. Although the buildings and freight cars were damaged, there were no injuries.[4] The station has been listed in the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and National Register of Historic Places since 1984 and is part of the Operating Passenger Railroad Stations Thematic Resource.[3][5][6][7]

There are plans to redesign the public space and create a transit plaza between the CNJ and NJT stations.[8][9][10] [11][12][13] Funding was approved in 2018.[14][15][16]

The proposed Union County Light Rail, which would have connected midtown Elizabeth with Newark Airport, would have had its western terminus at this station. The station for this line would have been referred to as Midtown to distinguish from the other stations in Elizabeth on this line. The plan has been replaced by the Union go bus expressway, a proposed bus rapid transit system between Garwood and the airport.[17][18][19]

References

1. Wyckoff, Jane Bower (April 21, 1949). "Development of Jersey Central Spurred by Plainfield Enthusiasts". The Plainfield Courier-News. p. 17. Retrieved August 10, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "DOT Gives Farewell Toots to Underused 'Bayonne Scoots'". The Home News. New Brunswick, New Jersey. August 7, 1978. p. 13. Retrieved August 11, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
4. "Wreck at Elizabeth, NJ". Retrieved 2009-03-26.
5. "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places". New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - Historic Preservation Office. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
6. Mountain Station New Jersey Transit Railroad Station Survey
7. Essex County Listings on the National Register of Historic Places (Building - #84002656)
8. Brown, Douglas John (January 12, 2015). "Plans for NJT Elizabeth station upgrade touted". Railway Age. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
9. "CHRISTIE ADMINISTRATION UNVEILS DESIGN PLANS FOR RECONSTRUCTION OF ELIZABETH STATION" (Press release). New Jersey Transit. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
10. "NEC INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS OF RELEVANCE TO NEW JERSEY" (PDF). ARP. January 2013. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
11. "New Jersey Transit". www.njtransit.com. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
12. "New Jersey Transit". www.njtransit.com. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
13. "NJ Transit approves contracts to upgrade Elizabeth Station - Railway Technology". April 12, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
14. "$55 million redesign, two-story building planned for Elizabeth NJ Transit station". Retrieved September 11, 2018.
15. "New Jersey Transit". www.njtransit.com. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
16. "NJ Transit moves forward with Elizabeth Station reconstruction". Railway Track and Structures. April 12, 2018.
17. "Union County Go bus expressway" (PDF). NJ Transit Bus Service: The Next Generation. New Jersey Transit. April 26, 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 13, 2013. Retrieved 2012-03-30.
18. "Bollwage supports construction of new midtown train station by NJ Transit", Suburban News, March 16, 2012, retrieved 2012-02-01
19. "Elizabeth Downtown Multi-Modal Integration Study". North Jersey Transportation Planning Organization. 2011. Archived from the original on 2010-11-10. Retrieved 2012-03-30.