Thursday evening, NJ Transit and Amtrak service into and out of New York Penn Station was very delayed because of a power problem that lasted for a long time before rush hour.
Amtrak said that all power was restored around 5:30 p.m., and all train service between New Haven and Philadelphia began again. However, the transit agency warned of “significant delays” due to backed-up rail traffic and single-tracking.
Amtrak had said before that the service stoppage, which happened for hours on Thursday afternoon, was due to a “malfunctioning circuit breaker” that cut power to the lines between New York Penn Station and Newark Union Station. Later, both Amtrak and NJ Transit said that a brush fire in Secaucus had also made things hard for trains.
It was just before 6 p.m. when NJ Transit said service had started up again. By 5:50 p.m., trains on the Trenton and Long Branch lines could be seen leaving NY-Penn Station. Even in the evening, delays of up to 90 minutes were still possible.
The NJ Transit said that its passes and tickets could be used on NJ Transit, private buses, and the PATH at Newark Penn, Hoboken, and 33rd Street.
NJ Transit said that trains are going from Newark to Trenton and told people going south to take the PATH to Newark. People who work in Dover and Montclair were told to take the PATH to Hoboken to get to their trains.
Because of the power problems, some Amtrak trains had to stop at Philadelphia or Newark.
PATH also said there were “network connection” problems at Newark Penn Station Thursday afternoon, which caused delays on the World Trade Center—Newark line. However, those problems were fixed before 5 p.m., and service was said to be back to normal.
Earlier this week, Amtrak said that because of the hot weather in the area, trains might have to run more slowly, which could cause up to 60-minute delays in the afternoon.
