Harlem Line
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Metro-North's Harlem Line, originally the New York Central Railroad's New York and Harlem Railroad, is an 82-mile (132 km) commuter rail line running north from New York City into eastern Dutchess County. The lower 53 miles (86 km) from Grand Central to Southeast, in Putnam County, are electrified with a third rail and has two tracks; north of that point, trains use electro-diesel locomotives on a single track. The diesel trains run as a shuttle on the northern end of the line except during rush hours, when they run as expresses to or from Grand Central. While the line has traditionally served to bring commuters from Westchester County to jobs in the city, in recent years it has begun to see more "reverse commuting", as Bronx residents use it to reach jobs in Southern Westchester where many stations are within walking distance of city centers. The northern reaches of the line are also close enough to Western Massachusetts to enable residents of part of that region to commute to jobs in the city as well, albeit at a considerable expense in time and money.
With 41 stations, the Harlem Line has the most of any Metro-North main line. Its northern terminal, Wassaic, is the northernmost station in the system. It is the only Metro-North line used exclusively by that carrier (no use by Amtrak, though CSX services freight customers as far north as Mount Vernon) and the only one that uses the entirety of existing track. Metro-North has assigned it the color code blue, used as trim on station signs and spot color on printed timetables. It is the only Metro-North line with this color.
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[edit] History
Prior to becoming part of the Metro-North system, the line continued all the way north to Chatham, New York on the Boston and Albany Railroad, about 52 miles past the current terminal at Wassaic. Passenger service from Dover Plains to Chatham was abandoned in 1972, and the tracks were removed north of Millerton shortly thereafter. A decade later, freight service between Dover Plains and Millerton was abandoned, with tracks removed from Wassaic to Millerton. On July 9, 2000, Metro-North restored service between Dover Plains and Wassaic, a move the railroad billed as its first service expansion since it was created in 1983.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) leased the line south of Dover Plains from Penn Central on June 1, 1972. Penn Central operated the last southbound passenger train between Chatham and Grand Central Terminal on March 20, 1972, ending service in the middle of the day. With no scheduled return trip to Chatham, passengers who had gone south in the morning were left stranded, with service going only as far north as Dover Plains (52 miles shy of Chatham). [1]
The area where the line ran from Wassaic to Craryville is now under control of the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association which currently has trails operating from Wassaic to the former Millerton station and between Boston Corners and Hillsdale.
[edit] Future
With the entire existing track in use since service to Wassaic was restored in 2000, there is little talk of expansion or branching. For now, Metro-North and the MTA have focused on improving existing facilities on the line, particularly stations such as Brewster where increasing usage has caused growing pains.
[edit] Station stops
Past Wassaic, the following stations once existed:
- Amenia
- Sharon
- Coleman's
- Millerton
- Mount Riga
- Boston Corners
- Copake Falls
- Hillsdale
- Craryville
- Martindale
- Philmont
- Ghent
- Chatham
[edit] Line description
The Harlem Line hews closely to roads along river-based transportation corridors dating back to even pre-rail times. It follows three major freeways closely from the Bronx northwards through Westchester: the Bronx River Parkway (and a short portion that becomes the Taconic State Parkway), the Saw Mill River Parkway and Interstate 684. In the last section it also begins to run close to NY 22, the long north-south two-lane state highway that parallels the eastern border of the state.
In Westchester, it serves some of that county's most affluent communities as it slowly trends eastward.
[edit] Manhattan/Bronx
The Harlem Line begins at Grand Central Terminal. The train tracks rise to ground level north of 97th Street in Manhattan. After stopping at Harlem-125th Street, the Harlem Line crosses the Harlem River at 135th Street in Manhattan, entering the Bronx.
In the Bronx, the Harlem Line cuts through the neighborhoods of the southwest Bronx, with two stations: Melrose, at 162nd Street, and Tremont, at 177th Street. It then runs under the Cross Bronx Expressway (I-95). Fordham station is next, at 190th Street, also known as Fordham Road. The Harlem Line then parallels the western edge of Fordham University until the Botanical Garden station at 200th Street, also known as Bedford Park Boulevard.
The Harlem Line then cuts northeast to join the Bronx River Parkway, which lies to the east of the tracks. The Williams Bridge station is next, at 210th Street, also known as Gun Hill Road. After the Williams Bridge station, Woodlawn Cemetery begins to the west of the tracks, with Webster Avenue in between the cemetery and tracks. The Woodlawn station is at 233rd Street.
The Harlem Line then goes under a bridge for the parkway, and it remains to the west of the tracks until Scarsdale station. The Wakefield station at 241st Street concludes the Bronx portion of the Harlem Line.
[edit] Westchester County
The Westchester portion of the Harlem Line begins at Bronx River Road in southeastern Yonkers. After the Mount Vernon West station, the Harlem Line runs along the on-ramp to the Cross County Parkway eastbound, right before Fleetwood station. After the Bronxville station, the Harlem Line parallels the Bronx River Parkway all the way up to White Plains.
From White Plains, the railroad winds its way through the city and passing through the yards at North White Plains which until 1984 was the northern boundary of third-rail electrification. The stretch north of North White Plains is unique because it is the only electrified stretch of Metro-North's network that has grade crossings, a byproduct of its existence pre-electrification. Katonah and Brewster are located right next to grade crossings.
After North White Plains, there is one more stop, Valhalla along the Taconic State Parkway, the successor to the Bronx River, and then the double-track railroad curves to follow the Saw Mill River Valley and the eponymous parkway. Rail and road briefly separate at Mount Kisco, but then remain close by at the last stop along the Saw Mill, Bedford Hills (although the parkway cannot be seen from the station).
Past Katonah, the railroad runs between the Croton River and I-684. Goldens Bridge and Purdy's are both located very close to the interstate, although only the former can be seen from it. North of the latter, the tracks choose the river over the interstate to take them to Croton Falls, and pick up Route 22 for the first time.
[edit] Putnam County
After Croton Falls station, the Harlem Line runs along East Branch Reservoir and crosses into Putnam County. The landscape is increasingly rural. Above Southeast station (formerly Brewster North), the railroad passes under Interstate 84 and through the yards at Putnam Junction. This is the northern boundary of third-rail electrification. Diesel territory and single track begin here. The tracks finally follow their own course, away from any road or river, past the long-abandoned Towner's station up to Patterson and into Dutchess County.
[edit] Dutchess County
Shortly before reaching Pawling, the line enters the Harlem Valley from which it takes its name and begins to parallel Route 22, although not as closely as it did the roads further south (indeed, they even cross over a few times). A few miles north of Pawling the Appalachian Trail crossing has earned its own flag stop to allow thru-hikers to take a break in the city and day hikers to visit the nearby Pawling Nature Preserve.
The next two stops, Harlem Valley-Wingdale and Dover Plains, are roughly eight miles (13 km) apart, the longest distance between any two stops on the Harlem Line. Until 2000, Dover Plains was the last stop on the line, but then tracks remaining from the NYCRR era that had not yet been torn up were renovated and the line was extended to Tenmile River and their new northern terminus, Wassaic. A small yard where diesel trains await their routes just past the station marks the end of the line.
[edit] Rolling stock
On the electrified portions of the line, the same standard electric multiple units, mainly M7s, used on the corresponding portions of the Hudson Line can be seen. A few M3s are in service, and the thirty remaining M1s (to be used for Yankee Stadium shuttle service in the future) are also occasionally used to serve passengers. And also as with the Hudson Line, diesels are driven by dual-mode Genesis locomotives. However, in addition to Genesises in its own colors, Metro-North has leased some Amtrak Genesis for use on the Harlem Line due to the age of some of the FL9s and F10s in its own fleet. The FL9s and F10s are generally used on the upper Harlem Line for shuttle service between Southeast (where the third rail ends) and Wassaic, 29 miles north in Dutchess County.
[edit] External links
- Map of the Putnam and Harlem Divisions of the New York Central Railroad
- New York Central: Harlem Line
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| East of Hudson (New York) | New York: Harlem Line • Hudson Line • Putnam (defunct line) |
| East of Hudson (Connecticut) | Main line: New Haven Line Branch lines: New Canaan Branch • Danbury Branch • Waterbury Branch |
| West of Hudson | Pascack Valley Line • Port Jervis Line |
