Princeton Branch

The Princeton Branch is a commuter rail line and service owned and operated by New Jersey Transit (NJT) in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The line is a short branch of the Northeast Corridor Line, running from Princeton Junction northwest to Princeton with no intermediate stops. Also known as the Dinky Line, or the Princeton Junction and Back (PJ&B), the branch is served by special shuttle trains. At 2.9 mi (4.7 km) it is the shortest scheduled commuter rail line in the United States. The run takes 4 minutes, 47 seconds. In conjunction with Princeton University, NJT intends to shorten the line by approximately 460 ft (140 m).

History

When the Camden and Amboy Rail Road and Transportation Company opened its original Trenton-New Brunswick line in 1839, the line was located along the east bank of the Delaware and Raritan Canal, about one mile (2 km) from downtown Princeton. The new alignment (now the Northeast Corridor Line) opened in 1863, but some passenger trains continued to use the old line until the Princeton Branch opened on May 29, 1865, using a Grice & Long steam dummy for passenger service.

The Pennsylvania Railroad leased and began to operate the C&A, including the Princeton Branch, in 1871. Penn Central Transportation took over operations in 1968. When Conrail was formed in 1976, the Final System Plan called for the transfer of the Princeton Branch to Conrail and then to the New Jersey Department of Transportation, but the transfer to NJDOT was not made until 1984.

The Princeton train, locally called the "Dinky" or the "PJ&B" (for "Princeton Junction and Back"), is a unique symbol of Princeton University that has grown over time to emblemize the University. It is mentioned in F. Scott Fitzgerald's "This Side of Paradise", featured in the TV program "Family Ties" when young Alex P. Keaton goes for his on-campus interview, and it is also in the 1934 Bing Crosby Movie "She Loves Me Not". The theme of Princeton and the train is repeated again in the University's own traditional homecoming song "Going Back to Nassau Hall" by Kenneth S. Clark (1905). In it, the line "We'll clear the track as we go back" refers to the Princeton Branch tracks that stop on campus.

The Great Dinky Robbery

The Great Dinky Robbery was a prank perpetrated by four Princeton University students on Friday, May 3, 1963. At the time, Princeton was an all-male school and the Dinky was the primary means of transportation for women coming to the campus to meet their dates. In the "Robbery", four students on horseback ambushed the train as it was arriving at Princeton station. A convertible was parked across the track forcing the Dinky to come to an abrupt halt. At that point, the ersatz cowboys rode up to the Dinky, and, led by George Bunn '63 who was armed with a pistol loaded with blanks, boarded and seized four girls selected on the spot. The riders and their newly found dates rode off on the horses, the convertible was moved off the tracks, and the Dinky arrived safely, albeit a few minutes late. Although the University administrators were aware of the event and knew who was involved, they took no official action against them.

Service

The Princeton Branch provides rail service directly to the Princeton University campus from Princeton Junction, where New Jersey Transit and Amtrak trains that go to Newark, New York City, and Philadelphia can be boarded. Peak period trains leave Princeton on weekdays between 5:59 am and 8:14 pm, approximately, and leave Princeton Junction on weekdays between 5:03 am and 8:10 pm, approximately (some trains handle both peak and off-peak commuters to and from the Northeast Corridor). There are 41 departures in each direction daily. The line is served by a single or two-car set of Budd Arrow III self-propelled electric coach cars. The Federal Railroad Administration considers any power car to be a locomotive.

Future

Station relocation controversy

Princeton University plans a campus expansion at the site of the branch's northern terminal station that will move the station 460 feet south of its current location. Rail advocates fear that access to the new station would be less convenient, resulting in decreased ridership that would "threaten the train's existence." In 2010 the Princeton Regional Planning Board and New Jersey Transit (NJT) presented plans to convert the train to a Rapid Transit Bus (BRT) that would be part of a larger regional BRT system. In April 2010 a group formed on the social network site, Facebook, called "Save the Princeton Dinky". It has attracted over 6,000 alumni, locals and others in support of keeping the Dinky train. The group has now become a registered New Jersey nonprofit organization with its own website, savethedinky.org. The Princeton Regional Planning Board ultimately passed a resolution supporting the continuation of train service. On October 4, 2011, by a vote of 3-2, Princeton Borough Council voted to ratify an agreement whereby Princeton University promises to fund a transit study and provide other benefits in exchange for rezoning for its "Arts and Transit" project. In 2013, NJT approved a transfer of property agreement with the university involving three parcels around the station and proposed arts center. At the same time the New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers and the National Association of Railroad Passengers petitioned the U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB) to review the planned move. The petition asks that STB to assert its jurisdiction over the Princeton Branch and require any truncation of the line be made only with the federal agency's express approval since there is a partial abandonment of the right of way involved. In July 2014 the agency found that NJT was a local provider of mass transit and not subject to its rules.

Dinky Transitway

The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission and New Jersey Transit are conducting studies to develop the Central New Jersey Route 1 Bus Rapid Transit Project. Part of the proposals call for the construction of the "Dinky Transitway" along the Princeton Branch right-of-way, which would incorporate the rail service and add exclusive bus lanes and a greenway for bicycle and pedestrian traffic. In April 2012, the university submitted revised plans for the arts and transit center, which calls for the extension of the station house onto to right of way for possible use as restaurant. The Regional Planning Board has passed an ordinance requiring the land be preserved for a transportation right-of-way that could eventually extend farther into the central business district at Nassau Street. The new station house plans would require the board's approval before construction could start. According to the university, ownership of the trackage would have to change hands in order for the transitway to implemented. While NJT has indicated that moving the station would not be detrimental to its planning and requested abandonment of that public use of the station house from the State Historic Preservation Office. In June 2013, an agreement approved by NJT transfer between the agency and the university indicates that a new station and bus transfer facility will be constructed built by the university.

Stations

References

• David McIlroy, Daily Princetonian article, 2004. Accessed 3/20/2006.
• Editorial [2] Princeton Alumni Weekly (April 7, 2004)
• Capi Lynn, 1923 botched train holdup nears anniversary, Statesman Journal, 2003. Accessed 3/21/2006.
• Bleary, H. The Great Dinky Robbery Princeton Alumni Weekly (Dec. 20, 2000)
• Edwards, Selden. The Great Train Robbery Princeton Alumni Weekly (April 7, 2004)

External links

• Daily Princetonian article on DMU use on the Princeton Branch

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