West Side Avenue station explained

West Side Avenue
Style:NJ Transit
Address:West Side Avenue & Claremont Avenue
Borough:Jersey City, New Jersey
Coordinates:40.7146°N -74.0873°W
Owned:New Jersey Transit
Platform:1 island platform 2 side platforms
Tracks:2
Connections: NJ Transit Bus:
Parking:804 spaces, 18 accessible spaces[1]
Bicycle:Yes
Accessible:Yes
Zone:1
Opened:[2]
Other Services Header:Former services
Other Services Collapsible:yes
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Custom:
Shape:none
Line:none
Marker:rail-light
Zoom:14

West Side Avenue station is a station on the Hudson–Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) in the West Side neighborhood in Jersey City, New Jersey. Located on the east side of West Side Avenue, the station is the terminal of the West Side Avenue branch of the Hudson–Bergen Light Rail, with service to Tonnelle Avenue station in North Bergen. The station consists of a single island platform and a pair of tracks that end at the station. The station contains a pedestrian bridge over West Side Avenue to a small parking lot and bus stop on the west side of the street. The station is accessible to people with disabilities, with an elevator in the pedestrian overpass and train-level platforms. West Side Avenue station opened on April 15, 2000 as part of the original operating segment of the Hudson–Bergen Light Rail.[3]

History

West Side Avenue station is located on the site of a station with the same name used by the Central Railroad of New Jersey. The original station was established in 1869 as part of the Newark and New York Railroad at the crossing for Mallory Avenue (Hudson County Route 611). The stop, known as West Bergen was moved in the late 1870s to West Side Avenue. A two-story wooden depot was built at West Side Avenue and an eastbound brick station measuring NaNfeet came in 1910. Service at West Side Avenue, which went to Lafayette Street Terminal in Newark became truncated on February 3, 1946 when a steamship collided with the bridge over the Hackensack River, eliminating two spans.[4] The station lost passenger service on May 6, 1948 when service on the branch ended.[5]

The new station opened on April 15, 2000.

After two years of studies, in May 2011, NJT announced its plan for a 0.7miles extension of the line. The new track would be laid along an elevated viaduct from the West Side Avenue station, across Route 440 to the northern end of the proposed Bayfront redevelopment area, where a new station would be constructed. The trip between the two stations would take 1 minute and 50 seconds. The project, eligible for federal funding, is estimated to cost at $171.6 million.[6] [7] [8] In December 2017, NJ Transit approved a $5 million preliminary engineering contract for the extension project.[9]

In early 2019, it was announced that the West Side Avenue, Martin Luther King Drive, and Garfield Avenue stations on the West Side Branch would close for nine months starting in June 2019 for repairs to a sewer line running along the right-of-way. During that time, replacement service was provided by NJ Transit shuttle buses.[10] [11] Service to the station was restored on May 23, 2020.[12]

Station layout

P
Platform level
Northbound toward Tonnelle Avenue
Northbound toward Tonnelle Avenue
GStreet levelEntrance/exit, buses, park and ride

The station is on an embankment above the east side of street, and consists of an island platform and two tracks. Bumper blocks are at the west end of the station while the platform continues with a pedestrian bridge and elevator connecting it to a large park and ride lot and bus station.[13] It is built along the former Central Railroad of New Jersey's Newark and New York Railroad right of way that continued west across Newark Bay.

Vicinity

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: West Side Avenue Station . July 5, 2023 . . en-US.
  2. News: Canal . Alberto . Leaders Cheer Light Rail Opening as Hudson Steps Into 21st Century . March 14, 2023 . The Jersey Journal . April 16, 2000 . . A1, A8. Newspapers.com.
  3. News: Canal . Alberto . Leaders Cheer Light Rail Opening as Hudson Steps Into 21st Century . March 14, 2023 . The Jersey Journal . April 16, 2000 . . A1, A8. Newspapers.com.
  4. News: Railroad Ripples . November 3, 2019 . The Passaic Daily News . October 4, 1889 . . 3. Newspapers.com.
  5. News: CNJ to Drop Part of Branch . November 3, 2019 . . May 6, 1948 . . 2. Newspapers.com.
  6. Web site: Whiten . Jon . Light Rail Extension to Jersey City's West Side Gets Push Forward from NJ Transit . Jersey City Independent . May 11, 2011 . May 13, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111006142157/http://www.jerseycityindependent.com/2011/05/11/light-rail-extension-to-jersey-citys-west-side-gets-push-forward-from-nj-transit/ . October 6, 2011 . dead .
  7. Web site: Whiten . Jon . West Side Light Rail Extension Project Picks Up Some Federal Funding . Jersey City Independent . August 23, 2010 . April 4, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110712125400/http://www.jerseycityindependent.com/2010/08/23/west-side-light-rail-extension-project-picks-up-some-federal-funding/ . July 12, 2011 . dead .
  8. Web site: Archived copy . April 15, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120322185259/http://www.hblr440aa.com/docs/03_LongListofAlternatives.pdf . March 22, 2012 . dead .
  9. Web site: Expansion of Hudson-Bergen light rail expected to get $5 million boost. The Jersey Journal. Zeitlinger. Ron. December 9, 2017. January 12, 2018.
  10. Web site: McDonald . Terrence T. . Light rail riders sound off on planned route suspension in Jersey City . nj.com . March 7, 2019 . March 8, 2019.
  11. Web site: West Side Avenue Light Rail Service to be Suspended Until 2020 . Jersey Digs . February 8, 2019 . March 8, 2019.
  12. Web site: Nj Transit.
  13. http://subwaynut.com/hblr/west_side_ave/index.php West Side Station photos
  14. http://www.njcu.edu/programs/jchistory/Pages/L.../Lightolier.htm – JB Bd of Ed @ Lightoiler Building