A Bad 24 Hours For NJ Transit

Overnight, NJ Transit had a service disruption on the Main/Bergen line when a pedestrian committed suicide by standing in front of an oncoming train in Saddle Brook, New Jersey. That didn't affect nearly as many people as the major disruption that occurred this afternoon when a tanker truck was struck by an oncoming NJ Transit train in Garfield, just a few miles from where the suicide had occurred.

Hobart Place resident Toniann Freeman was leaving her home to eat lunch with her boyfriend when the truck got stuck on the tracks.

The train crossing gates came down on top of the trailer of the truck, Freeman said. The driver got out of the truck and waved to the train headed his way. The train crashed into the trailer, dragging it forward a few feet. The trailer fell over and was dragged some more, she said.

The train, she said, swayed back and forth and then stopped.

The truck appears to have stalled on the tracks, though one eyewitness says that the landing gear for the trailer hooked on the track, and was struck by an outbound train. The locomotive struck the tanker, which was forcefully separated from the cab, and the locomotive derailed. None of the six railcars the locomotive pulled were derailed.

This is a rather dangerous section of track, as it curves through Garfield and runs through an urban area with several grade-level crossings:


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There is no ETA on when service will be restored, and it looks like the evening commute will suck for everyone on the Main and Bergen lines. According to NJ Transit:

For travel from Hoboken Terminal and Secaucus Junction to Bergen County Line stations (except Rutherford), customers should take a Main Line train (toward Suffern) to Ridgewood, and board a shuttle train to Bergen County Line stations.
For travel from Hoboken Terminal and Secaucus Junction to Rutherford Station, customers should board an outbound Main Line train (toward Suffern) to Kingsland Station, and then take a shuttle bus to Rutherford.
For travel to Hoboken Terminal and Secaucus Junction from Bergen County Line stations (except Rutherford), customers should board an outbound train (toward Suffern) to Ridgewood Station, and then take a Main Line train to Hoboken/Secaucus.
For outbound travel toward Suffern or inbound travel to Hoboken/Secaucus from Rutherford Station, customers should board the shuttle bus to Kingsland Station, and then take a Main Line train to their final destination.

It's quite possible that the derailment will affect service through the weekend as crews not only have to remove the damaged equipment, but repair that particular rail segment.