Other Public Transit – Page 5

Yankees-East 153rd St. (Metro-North)

The New York Yankees are the Republican Party of baseball in the northeastern US. That’s to say, they are absolutely vile and evil. At least they didn’t get a mainline rail station until 2009 when the present Yankee Stadium opened???

But, since I have to be relatively objective in these reviews, I’ll save the slander for after I drop the score. That aside, the station is built pretty large, and may seem overbuilt. But, remember, the Yankees are a MLB team – and, to a lesser extent, New York City FC also calls Yankee Stadium home, so this station presumably gets that ridership on game days too. As such, the station is designed with game-day crowds specifically in mind, and with mechanisms for trains to terminate here from both the New Haven and Harlem Lines. Yet, in spite of this, you still have elevators (for accessibility), benches, wastebaskets, and all that. You even have a rather long concourse out to 153rd and 157th Streets, and into a park that you can walk by to reach the stadium. There’s also vending machines in said concourse, and it’s also not exactly well-suited for hot days. Yikes. As for bus connections, you’re gonna be walking to River Ave. for the Bx13. Overall, though, it’s not a poorly designed station whatsoever, given its primary usecase.

The good: It’s well-designed to manage crowds in particular. It’s also close to where while you can theoretically make a connection to the B, D, and #4 lines, it’s not a good location for that (or any connection to the subway – Marble Hill has a better connection, albeit to the #1 line, despite not being accessible).

The bad: The rather poor connection to the B, D, and 4 lines primarily. Also, the Yankees. It can also feel like you’re in Hell here on a hot day.

Nearby points of interest: The Yankees. Duh.

Transit connections:
Metro-North (Hudson Line)
MTA bus (Bx13, at River Ave.)

Overall, it’s a pretty well-designed station with large crowds in mind. Certainly, a lot better than some other stadium-centric stations I’ve seen.

Rating: 8.5/10 (ignoring the fact the Yankees exist – otherwise it becomes a 0/10 just because the Yankees exist at all)

Anyways, on to the Yankees slander. The Yankees suck. They’re evil. They are not named the Evil Empire for nothing. They’re literally the embodiment of the Republican Party, both socially and financially. They embody greed (buying all the talent out rather than developing it in-house), they PROBABLY fund the Republican Party (but conservatives oftentimes like to LARP as Yanks fans), they’re literally owned by Satan himself. Actually, no, I don’t think Satan would be a Yankees fan. That’s an insult. THEY EVEN HELD A MOMENT OF SILENCE AFTER CHARLIE KIRK WAS SHOT IN THE NECK AND KILLED?!

They also buy their way into the World Series – however, given they only seem to win in years Democrats are in power, maybe they’ll fall at the hands of the Red Sox given they’re duking it out in the wildcard stage of the MLB playoffs. You know, maybe I can respect Mets fans for the mutual hatred of the Yankees. More like Dankees.

Newark-Penn Station (Amtrak/NJ Transit/PATH)

Penn Station is a major station located in NYC- wait, we already did Penn Station? What’s this then?! Oh, oh oh….this is NEWARK Penn. Alrighty. So, this is Newark’s Penn Station, located pretty much within downtown Newark. Let’s look. Buckle down, as this one’s a doozy.

So, starting off with the PATH part of the station – it’s, surprisingly, directly connected to the Northeast Corridor platforms. It’s also the only thing to serve the upper level of the station. Discharge only, however. As such, it’s barren with only turnstiles to exit. But, you do have signage pointing downwards, departure boards for NJT and Amtrak, and even a connection to One Gateway and signage pointing towards …the Prudential Center?! Hey, give Boston their landmarks back! oh….this is a DIFFERENT one. Okay, I see, and the Jersey Devils play here?! Sick! Well, I’m not exactly one to follow hockey much, so I’ll instead let the hockey fans duke it out in the comments. (I loosely follow the Boston Bruins, I’ll cheer them on, but I’m not exactly as diehard a fan as I am for Rhode Island FC). Alrighty, so moving on, the concourse has a waiting room that’s staffed with NJT staff, another office for Amtrak, Dunks, among other things. There’s also a bus terminal which, quite bluntly, looks dingy as shit. The NJT Rail/Amtrak platforms are okay, there’s a lot of natural light, though I have to ask: why are the track numbers weird? Why is there a Track A, why are the express tracks numbered 2 and 3, WHY IS TRACK 1 NOT THE INNERMOST NORTHBOUND TRACK?! Anyways, I digress. Uniquely, one NJT Rail line terminates here at rush hour, forcing transfers either to a PSNY-bound train or to PATH (Raritan Valley Line trains terminate here due to capacity restrictions in the tunnels ahead) This is also quite a popular spot for railfanning, despite the fact there’s no high-speed action. Moving on, though, in the basement is the Newark City Subway (the Newark Light Rail) stop. This one’s a balloon loop with two lines: the main line, and the Broad Street branch. It’s actually quite a fine little station, with tiling and all that, but it’s rather quiet – and eerily so, a stark contrast to the station above. There’s also, weirdly, no fare gates here for the NLR, nor were there fareboxes on the buses. Does NJT just expect people to fare evade? Did I also mention there’s music playing in the station at all times seemingly? I genuinely don’t think there’s any other station I’ve reviewed where music is a part of the experience. Now, I won’t say it’s bad because it isn’t – whoever chooses the soundtrack doesn’t blast the same garbage crap that Mr. John Doe on the #2 subway line will blast while everyone is stuck on a delayed train in the Bronx or Harlem, and shoutout to NJT for that. With that out of the way though, this really isn’t too terrible a station! I mean yeah, it feels a tad sketchy at times, but it really isn’t too terrible.

Micky D’s – and what looks like someone DoorDashing with a bicycle

A zoomed in shot, I think I was trying to catch a PATH train?

The good: It’s in downtown Newark! You also have a bunch of bus connections and almost every NJT Rail line (certainly, every Newark Division line except the Atlantic City Line). You also have PATH, while it isn’t as frequent however. You also have music playing in the station at pretty much all times, which is pretty nice.

The bad: It can be a tad sketchy at times. Also, does NJT expect fare evasion on the NLR? Also, be prepared for a bull to escape and wreak havoc on your morning commute. Also, your commute could easily be killed (regardless if you take PATH or the NEC) should the gigantic imposing drawbridge have to be opened.

Nearby points of interest: A lot. The Prudential Arena, Rutger’s Newark campus, along with NJIT.

Transit connections:
Amtrak (Acela, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Keystone, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Northeast Regional, Vermonter)
PATH (Red Line/NWK-WTC)
NJT Rail (Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast, Raritan Valley)
Newark Light Rail (Grove St. Line, Broad St. Branch)
NJT bus (1, 5, 11, 21, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31, 34, 39, 40, 41, 44, 62, 65, 66, 67, 70, 71, 72, 73, 76, 78, 79, 108, 319, 361, 375, 378)

Overall, it’s not a bad station. It’s a bit sketchy, yeah, but it’s also downtown Newark. Despite being stupidly close to Penn Sta.-NY, it’s still an important station in its own right. Also, that oversized imposing drawbridge admittedly looks sick, all things considered. I do wonder though, if it ever opens.

Rating: 8.5/10

Middle Village-Metropolitan Ave. (Line M)

Metropolitan Avenue is a small station at the end of the M line located in the Middle Village neighborhood in Queens. It’s also the other end of the M line, not named “Forest Hills”. With that in mind, let’s look at it.

The M serves this stop at all times, and departs from here to either Forest Hills (weekdays), or operates as a shuttle to either Essex Street (on weekend days) or Myrtle/Broadway (overnights). The platform is a bit narrow and while you won’t find benches, you will find wastebaskets. There also exists a brick station house which is fully accessible (no stairs or elevators needed), and has both MTA employees and ticketing machines. As for buses, located on Metropolitan Avenue are connections to the Q38 (24.34), the Q54, and Q67. However, unfortunately, due to the Queens bus network redesign, the Q38 is no longer what some would consider a “meme route”. This stop’s also proposed as a transfer station to the Interborough Express – which was originally going to be quite a mess around the area with street-running segments (maybe the only segment of its kind in NYC proper?). However, public pressure got that changed – so no street-running will be happening in the future. Overall, though, not a bad station.

Forests! I think the ex-LIRR Bay Ridge line is down there, too?

The good: It’s located next to both a shopping center and a school. Furthermore, the area is pretty residential once you go beyond Metropolitan Avenue itself – and is relatively dense at that, compared to normal suburbia. Also, it’s proposed to be a transfer station for the Interborough Express. Neat! It’s also accessible without even needing an elevator!

The bad: Not much. The platforms can be a tad bit narrow, which might make it annoying to navigate should one need a mobility device (I’d presume – idk, I don’t use mobility devices).

Nearby points of interest: There’s a shopping center and a high school! There’s also a cemetery.

Transit connections:
6th Ave. Lines (M)
MTA bus (Q38, Q54, Q67)
Interborough Express (in the future)

Overall, it’s not a bad station. I don’t have TOO much to say about it, but sometimes that’s a good thing. Though it does feel a tad cramped.

Rating: 7/10

Brookfield Place (& the Liberty Landing Ferry)

The Brookfield Place ferry terminal is a short walk away from the World Trade Center and is located in Battery Park City, off Vesey Street.

The terminal consists of a glass shelter and waiting areas for the various carriers that serve here. There’s also a ticket office for NY Waterway, and if memory serves, I think also a newsstand? I could be misremembering though. Yeah, not a lot to talk about. Sorry. It’s kinda in walking distance of the World Trade Center station complex, so I’m lumping it in with them, even though this wasn’t built until 2009.

The good: It’s accessible! It’s also got seating and ticketing areas.

The bad: Nothing. I got nothing to remark about it.

Nearby points of interest: Battery Park City, the World Trade Center, Brookfield Place.

Rating: 8/10

Yeah, because there’s not a lot to talk about, I’ll also be talking about the Liberty Landing Ferry. The ferry used on this route is a smaller one, yellow colored. The route goes over to the Warren Street dock over in Jersey City, and then it bangs a u-ey to stop at the Liberty State Park ferry terminal. It’s quite a scenic ride, all things considered (really, the view of NYC from Liberty State Park in general is beautiful), and for the rather scenic trip across the Hudson, the $10 it costs is worth it.

The good: It’s SCENIC.

The bad: The $10 might be steep for the full run, however I think it’s worth it.

Nearby points of interest: Liberty State Park is a big one!

Rating: 8/10

Overall though, it’s not bad. Now, that does leave two ferry terminals tied to this as un-reviewed. But, I’ll cover them at a later date. Maybe, as filler content.

WTC Cortlandt (Line #1)

Alrighty, part 3 of this 4-part miniseries on the World Trade Center station complex. The #1 line has its own station here, with out of system connections to the other stations (PATH & the 2/3/A/C/E/R/W stations). Located directly under the World Trade Center, it suffered a similar fate to the PATH station in the immediate fallout of the September 11th attacks – requiring a full rebuild.

So, I talked about how the Port Authority handled the attacks in that World Trade Center entry, but how did the MTA handle things? A subway operator, approximately a minute or so after the first plane striking, reported an explosion in the vicinity of the station and, from what I can find from accounts on Reddit, the train passing through at the time skipped the stop, the 1 line south of Chambers Street was evacuated entirely (no trains allowed) and eventually service was forced to turn at 14th Street. Later that day, at 10:20am, the system was shut down entirely for about 2 and a half hours – one of a small handful of times the system has ever seen a full shutdown (the others being during Hurricanes Irene and Sandy, the January 2015 snowstorm, and the relatively small amount of full city blackouts and union strikes over the years. However, as a result of 9/11, though, various service changes kicked in and it’d take a while for full service to be restored to Lower Manhattan, among these changes including the 1 line going to New Lots, quite possibly the only time in NYC Subway history that it’s ever entered Brooklyn, along with other unusual stuff like the E running via the C in Brooklyn (the C was not running), the J to Bay Ridge, and the Q to Forest Hills(????) (the R was not running). Yeah, things were weird. Eventually, though, by late 2002, everything was relatively normal again. Cortlandt Street on the 1, however, wouldn’t reopen until 2018. And, thus, brings things to the modern day.

The station is an accessible and rather modern MTA subway station, consisting of two side platforms, benches, wastebaskets, the usual affair. Elevators also exist, making this station fully accessible. There also exists an exit that dumps you out right into the Oculus. There’s (if I’m remembering right) also an OMNY machine and a station agent, along with modern countdown clocks and an underpass connecting the two platforms. Overall, not a terrible station, if I say so myself. There’s also a marble mural on the wall, which from what I can find has words from both the US’s Declaration of Independence and the UN’s Declaration of Human Rights. Overall though, not a bad station!

The good: It’s modern, it’s accessible, and serves a major location in lower Manhattan. There’s also connections to quite a few buses and (out of system) other lines. It’s also a direct connection to the Oculus and Twin Tower.

The bad: Not big on the Oculus personally, but that’s beyond the scope of this.

Nearby points of interest: The World Trade Center. Duh.

Transit connections:
7th Ave. (1)
MTA bus (M9, M20, M22, M55, BM1, BM2, BM3, BM4, BxM18, QM7, QM8, QM11, QM25, SIM1, SIM1C, SIM2, SIM3, SIM3C, SIM4, SIM4C, SIM4X, SIM32, SIM34, X27, X28)
NJT bus (120)

Yeah, it’s got all the same connections, bus-wise, as Chambers St./WTC on the A/C/E lines.

Overall though, it’s not a bad station. It doesn’t serve anything unique to its walkshed, but sometimes, that isn’t a bad thing. And, this is one instance where it isn’t bad.

Rating: 9/10

Chambers St.-World Trade Center (Lines A, C, E), Park Place (Lines #2, 3), and Cortlandt St. (Lines R, W)

While the PATH station is considerably more-used than the MTA stations, there’s still a couple of MTA stations. Chambers St.-World Trade Center (& Park Place and Cortlandt St.) is one of those two stations – er, station complexes. Yep. This one’s a case of “four stations in a trenchcoat”. Buckle down, because this one’s gonna get messy.

Inside the Oculus, the signage only points to the E line – the R/W are elsewhere, although once you’re in there, you’ll see signage for the A and C lines, as well as the 2, 3, R, and W. Weirdly, though, I had a particular amount of trouble finding the 2 and 3 line’s platform. Despite this, it’s located directly underneath the bumper blocks on the E line’s tracks. As for the in-station connection to Cortlandt Street, it’s south of the A/C platforms. All together, everything’s connected by a series of passageways that can be quite tricky to navigate. Each set of platforms all have the same basic things: turnstiles, ticketing machines (some OMNY, some MetroCard), some entrances have station agents, they all have seating, some have countdown clocks, but not all platforms are accessible. Namely, the A/C and 2/3 platforms are very much not accessible. However, the E platform is accessible by way of ramps and the R/W have elevators, as is the nearby 7th Ave. express stop on Chambers Street. All this aside, other than the R/W being renovated recently (relatively), it’s all standard IND and IRT stuff.

***THERE IS A TRAIN APPROACHING THE STATION, PLEASE STAND AWAY FROM THE PLATFORM EDGE!!!***

The Dey Street tunnel, just beyond the paid area

One of the passageways near the A/C/E platforms

The good: It serves the World Trade Center! Furthermore, it has an out-of-system connection to the Fulton Center. The BMT platforms’ artwork looks quite nice, too.

The bad: Accessibility is hit-or-miss. You have to be on the correct line to be able to use the accessibility features here (E, R, W only).

Nearby points of interest: The World Trade Center. Duh. Also, the Fulton Center.

Transit connections:
Broadway (R, W)
8th Ave. (E-terminus, A, C)
7th Ave. (2, 3)
MTA bus (M9, M20, M22, M55, BM1, BM2, BM3, BM4, BxM18, QM7, QM8, QM11, QM25, SIM1, SIM1C, SIM2, SIM3, SIM3C, SIM4, SIM4C, SIM4X, SIM32, SIM34, X27, X28)
NJT bus (120)

Overall, it’s a messy station, with low ceilings, and it’s only half-accessible. Yeah, sorry, but PATH is objectively better here. (as is …the #1 line?)

Rating: 6/10

World Trade Center (PATH)

The September 11th attacks, more commonly simply known as 9/11, were a horrific incident that happened, well, on September 11th, 2001. I’m not going to talk about it too much as I’m sure y’all (the reader) know about the horrifying things that happened that day, the fact that 2977 people passed, the ensuing legislation that passed (including the Patriot Act and the birth of the Department of Homeland Security, and the TSA), airport security becoming much more stringent (and not loosening up since), among other things. I’m also not going to make any 9/11 jokes, given the rather dark nature of things. With that in mind, here’s World Trade Center on PATH.

So, the original PATH station was instead named “Hudson Terminal” and was built by the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad, but that got replaced by what’d become the old World Trade Center station in 1971. Consisting of a few balloon loops and 10 car long platforms, it was an upgrade. All the while, it served trains going to both Hoboken and Newark – which still holds true today. Unfortunately, however, trouble would arise as the 21st century inched closer. To be more exact, the station sustained some relatively minor damage after the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center with a ceiling collapse trapping a few people, however service would resume shortly after the incident. In 2001, however, things would get even worse for the station – and NYC as a whole. As I stated in the opening paragraph above, 9/11 happened.

So, how did the Port Authority handle things? After the North Tower was struck at the tail end of the AM rush hour commute, a few PATH trains had arrived into the station – one from Newark and two from Hoboken. The first Hoboken train that arrived just hightailed it out without so much as opening the doors. Were people confused? Probably, initially. As for the second Hoboken train, the train was evacuated and didn’t leave the station. It’d then be found among all the debris. The third train, from Newark? It was actually forcefully offloaded at Exchange Place and deadheaded to the station to pick up people left behind. There was also a fourth train that deadheaded to the station, with the sole purpose of picking up every last PATH employee – and a homeless person (who, according to an NJ.com article I found, took effort to get onto the train). Unfortunately, the North Tower gave way and collapsed.

A temporary station would be built and opened in 2003, and the present station, located within “The Oculus” (which I personally very much hate from an aesthetic POV – too sterile for my liking) would open in 2016. With that in mind, let’s review the actual station. It’s rather sterile, with a very, VERY large mezzanine and high amount of faregates. There’s also elevators, given this was built in a post-ADA landscape, as well as a few ticketing machines outside fare control. The platforms themselves are VERY clean, albeit rather sterile in appearance. There’s also countdown clocks, signage indicating what lines stop on what tracks (offpeak, only 2 tracks are in use – I would hope more are used during peak hours as this is one of the busiest, if not THE busiest, PATH stations), and even some seating. There’s also out-of-system connections to the #1 line at Cortlandt St., the A, C, and E lines at the MTA’s Chambers St.-WTC station, the R and W at another Cortlandt St. station, and the 2 and 3 lines at Park Place. Also, there exists a passage under Dey Street to the Fulton Street complex. Overall, though, it’s not a bad station, and I presume is very much a straight upgrade from the pre-9/11 version.

Is the “no photography” rule because of 9/11?

The good: It’s new! It’s accessible! It’s also located in a shopping center and a major employment center (lower Manhattan). Furthermore, it’s probably among the cleanest subway stations I’ve ever seen in my life. You also have direct service to both Newark and Hoboken from here.

The bad: It’s a bit sterile, but that’s minor. Also, does PATH just not sell TAPP cards?

Nearby points of interest: The WTC complex. Duh. Also, Battery Park City, a few parks, among other things.

Transit connections:
PATH (Hoboken-WTC, Newark-WTC)
MTA bus (M9, M20, M22, M55, BM1, BM2, BM3, BM4, BxM18, QM7, QM8, QM11, SIM1, SIM2, SIM3, SIM4, SIM7, SIM9, SIM15, SIM32, SIM33, SIM34, X27, X28)
WTC Cortlandt (1), Park Place (2,3), Cortlandt St. (R, W), and Chambers St.-World Trade Center (A, C, E) stations (out of system)

Overall, it’s not a bad station, is easily among the best on PATH, and also carries quite a bit of contemporary history.

Rating: 10/10

126 (PABT/Hoboken Terminal via Washington St./Lincoln Tunnel)

New Jersey Transit is a weird bus network with its main draw for weirdness coming from its fare system. What the hell is an override, and why are buses using zonal fares rather than a flat one like any sensible bus network?! In fact, this bus trip was MORE expensive than a NJT Rail ticket between Hoboken and Newark Broad(!!!). Why? Because it went to the PABT. Anyways, here’s the 126: one of Hoboken’s local routes that crosses into NY via the Lincoln Tunnel.

The rather messy bus terminal at Hoboken

So, the bus was crowded and, surprisingly, was of the inaccessible variety (high-floor boarding?! In 2025?!). There weren’t any fareboxes either, that I noticed, so all tickets and fares had to be handed to the driver directly. Did the driver even check the ticket? Probably not. Do they have a way of memorizing who’s going where? Also, probably not. At least, I wouldn’t count on it for a busy route like the 126. With that aside, it’s a straight shot from here to the Lincoln Tunnel. About 2.2 miles down the streets of Hoboken and (barely) Weehawken. Plenty of people both got on and off, suggesting it’s used for local travel. As for land use around the route, it’s actually pretty decent with mixed-use buildings! After crawling the streets of Hoboken for a decent bit, we enter Weehawken for a short period, and hop on the highway into the Lincoln Tunnel, pick up speed a little bit (even though we were still subjected to the tail end of Manhattan rush hour traffic), and soon enough we were weaving into the PABT.

A veterinarian hospital and a Trader Joe’s!

A parking garage and high-rise looming over the Palisades…

The good: It’s very frequent! During daytime hours, it shows up once about every 8-10 minutes. Even on weekends, it manages to maintain frequencies, at worst, of half-hourly. It also serves places people want to go in Hoboken and Midtown!

The bad: Why the hell does it cost $4 and change to ride this through the Lincoln Tunnel? What the hell is an override fare? And lastly, it doesn’t run overnight.

Nearby points of interest: The area it runs through is very walkable inherently. It’s one of the closest routes to the Hoboken Historical Museum, as well as the Stevens Institute of Technology. It can also get you close to Lincoln Harbor. However, I’d suggest asking Avery the Cuban-American for more insight as he knows a lot more about the area than I do.

Overall though, it’s not a bad route, and it’s a powerhouse (& maybe one of the most-used NJT routes?) that serves a lot of people in relatively little mileage. However, WHAT THE HELL IS AN OVERRIDE?! It’d be better if they used low-floor buses with better accessibility though (does NJT not know what a low-floor bus is?)

Rating: 8.5/10

Bowling Green (Line #s 4, 5)

Bowling Green is a small park located at the end of Broadway in Lower Manhattan, built in 1733. As the name suggested, it had an actual bowling green (used for lawn bowling) at one point, however I’m unsure if it still exists. This also happens to be the last station on the 4 and 5 lines before going into Brooklyn via the Joralemon Street tunnel. Let’s look at the station, though.

The station very much has been renovated at one point, as aside from a headhouse, there’s zero traces of IRT stuff here aside from an abandoned platform. Now, what was it used for? Well, the IRT used to run a shuttle from here to …South Ferry. What? Why would you run a shuttle 300 FEET?! Anyways, the platforms are more similar to State Street on the Orange Line in Boston, where doors open on the left one way and right in the other way. The platforms have your usual amenities, and you have a station agent and an OMNY machine. Furthermore, you have accessibility by way of elevators, and there’s two very different headhouses. In the Battery, you have the original IRT headhouse (which looks quite beautiful, by the way!), while another, more modern, house exists outside the Hamilton Customhouse (which also looks nice, but somehow I missed it). Being in lower Manhattan, your primary bus connections are to express buses and you’re stupidly close to a bunch of other stations.

The good: It exists! Furthermore, it’s the other IRT line’s access to the southernmost bits of Manhattan. It also has a headhouse in the Battery itself, along with a station agent. It’s also accessible! It’s also definitely been renovated and doesn’t seem to need that much a facelift.

The bad: No, this isn’t to be confused with Bowling Green, KY, or Ohio. Yeah, I can’t really think of much against this station.

Nearby points of interest: The Bowling Green, the Battery, the Alexander Hamilton customhouse, and a bunch of skyscrapers! This is also the closest station on the 4/5 lines to the Whitehall Street ferry terminal.

Transit connections:
Lexington Ave. (Lines #s 4/5)
MTA bus (M20, M55, BM1, BM2, BM3, BM4, QM7, QM8, QM11, QM25, QM65, SIM1C, SIM3C, SIM4, SIM4C, SIM4X, SIM5, SIM15, SIM33C, SIM35)
NJ Transit bus (120)

Rating: 8.5/10

Overall, it’s a rather very decent station. It’s got a lot of bus connections, looks nice, is functionally very usable, and overall just has nothing offensive going against it. Also, the headhouses look nice and not overbuilt.

Hoboken Terminal (NJT/Metro-North/PATH)

Okay, so many rail terminals oftentimes aren’t located on prime waterfront real estate. Boston’s two termini are on the edges of downtown, New Haven is in an industrial wasteland, and New York’s Penn Station and Grand Central Terminal are both in the heart of Midtown. And, for that matter, LI City and Atlantic Terminal are both in the hearts of lesser city centers (though not really a “city center” in practice), being LI City in the case of, well, LI City, and a neighborhood usually aptly referred to as “Downtown Brooklyn” in the case of Atlantic Terminal. However, there IS one major rail terminal in the metropolitan area that IS on prime waterfront property, and it’s actually quite beautiful. Meet: Hoboken Terminal.

Starting off in the PATH section, the station is pretty nice-looking, with green poles and what looks like vaulted ceilings to an untrained eye. While the platforms don’t have much in the way of amenities, you DO have countdown clocks at least. Outside fare control, you also have ticketing machines for PATH. Neat! Generally, a little barren but for a terminal, you probably don’t need much when you can just wait on the train.

Moving on up to the NJT Rail and bus section, and my GOD. This. Is. BEAUTIFUL!!! Easily among the most beautiful rail terminals, if not THE single most beautiful rail terminal I’ve ever seen, so far, in my personal opinions. Now, I’m not saying Grand Central is bad. It really isn’t, and I can see why many people say that’s the most beautiful rail terminal (in the country). However, I personally think the waterfront scenery gives Hoboken the edge over Grand Central here.

The platforms are unfortunately low-level, however you DO have a fully functional departure board listing every departure to Waldwick, Mt. Olive, Port Jervis, Gladstone, among other places. There’s wastebaskets, ticketing machines, a ticket OFFICE and waiting room (which is rather beautiful!), a ferry dock with connections across the Hudson, and even a Dunks! There were also restrooms in the waiting area, however I didn’t take a look. Overall, this really isn’t bad!

And a more bogstandard PL42AC locomotive spewing diesel fumes

Looking out into the rather toasty summer evening

Exiting out of the station one way, there’s access to the bus terminal. It’s okay, I guess. Nothing special. But, adjacent to the station is Pier A Park. You can get a view of the station building and the signage reading “LACKAWANNA” overlooking the river. And, holy SHIT, the views of NYC are unmatched. Just take a look.

The HBLR station is pretty standard as well. You have ticket readers on the platform, benches, two tracks, inaccurate countdown clocks, the usual affair. There was also a ticketing machine here as well as a nice view of lower Manhattan. Not bad! In terms of land use nearby, it’s actually REALLY GOOD as well. I mean, Hoboken in general (& also neighboring Jersey City) are very good with making roads safer and following through on Vision Zero initiatives and making the bike lanes they implement actually be safe to use. (including various tactics to QUITE LITERAQLLY HAVE ZERO TRAFFIC DEATHS IN 8 YEARS including higher visibility crosswalks, curb extensions, daylighting methods, lowering speed limits, among others)

The good: It’s BEAUTIFUL. Holy SHIT, this is easily among the most beautiful stations I’ve ever seen. There’s also a waiting room, a rather scenic view of Manhattan, a Dunks(!), ferry connections, a bus terminal, among others. There’s also a staffed ticket office and machines, which is nice. Furthermore, the sheer amount of traffic that comes through here makes it a railfan’s paradise as well.

The bad: Low level boarding. That’s it. That’s literally it. Give it a high level platform makeover and it’ll be a 10/10 station.

Nearby points of interest: Newport is a relatively short walk from here, though the mall itself isn’t that close by. A couple of nearby piers got converted to parks, and if you’re into transit history, you can even see old trolley tracks outside on Hudson Place. If you’re into that stuff, I suggest reading up about the North Hudson Co. Railway. I was also told by Avery (the Cuban-American – you probably see him in the comments of some transit videos sharing some relevant and cool info). There’s also a waterfront walkway, built as part of a state-mandated master plan, to link local communities with a park and provide waterfront access. Neat!

Transit connections:
NJT Rail (Montclair-Boonton, Morristown, Gladstone, Main & Bergen Co., Raritan Valley)
Hudson-Bergen Light Rail
Metro-North (Pascack Valley, Port Jervis)
PATH (Hoboken-WTC, Hoboken-33rd St.)
NJT bus (22, 23, 85, 87, 89, 126)

Overall, it’s one of the best stations I’ve ever been to, and is a 10/10 in scenery. However, the fact it doesn’t have level boarding is LITERALLY THE ONE THING KEEPING ME FROM GIVING THIS A 10/10 BLOODY HELL. However, I do recommend, even if to just appreciate how beautiful a station it is.

Rating: 9.75/10