Princeton Junction (NJT station)

Infobox Station
name=Princeton Junction
style=NJT Rail


image_size=
image_caption=The Princeton Branch platform at Princeton Junction station
address=2 Wallace Road
Princeton Junction, NJ 08550
line=Amtrak:rail color box|system=Amtrak|line=KeystoneNew Jersey Transit:rail color box|system=NJT|line=Northeast Corridor
other=NJT Bus: 600 and 976
platform=3
tracks=5
parking=
bicycle=
passengers=
pass_year=
pass_percent=
opened=
electrified=16 January 1933
rebuilt=
ADA=yes
code=PJC
owned=New Jersey Transit
zone=19 (NJT)
services=
mpassengers=

Princeton Junction at West Windsor is a New Jersey Transit and Amtrak rail station on the Northeast Corridor located in Princeton Junction, an area within West Windsor Township. On Amtrak and NJT tickets its abbreviation is PJC. A 2.8 mile (4.51 km) spur line, the Princeton Branch, connects Princeton Junction to the Princeton University campus in Princeton, New Jersey.

Amtrak reported 65,679 boardings and alightings at Princeton Junction for the year ending September 30, 2006, down dramatically from 2005. [ [http://www.amtrak.com/pdf/factsheets/NEWJERSEY06.pdf Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2006 State of New Jersey] , accessed June 27, 2007] Most of the former traffic was Amtrak "Clocker" service commuter traffic to New York, Newark, or Philadelphia; since October 28, 2005, the Clockers have been replaced by NJT trains. Most Amtrak trains stopping here offer direct service as far as New York, Philadelphia, and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Aside from two early-morning trains to Washington, D.C. and two evening returns, a transfer is needed for long distance service; more long-distance Amtrak trains stop at nearby Trenton Station.

Parking

Permit parking is operated by the West Windsor Parking Authority. All spaces on the New York-bound side as well as most of the spaces on the Philadelphia-bound side are in permit lots. West Windsor Township residents have approximately a two-year wait to buy permits for $100 per quarter [ [http://www.westwindsorpa.com/permits/ Parking Permit Program] , accessed February 3rd, 2007] ; nonresident permits cost $165 per quarter and have a waiting period twice as long.

Daily parking is available for $4 in a close-in lot just north of the Princeton Branch platform; this lot fills by 6:35 AM on Mondays through Thursdays and 7:30 on Fridays. Parking is also available in the rear of the paved lot on the south side of Vaughn Drive, but the daily spaces in that lot are often sold out well before 7:30. Privately operated parking is available for $8 along Station Drive near Washington Road.

As of January 1, 2007, the Alexander Road Quarterly Permit Fee was increased to $165 and the Daily Parking Fee was increased to $4.00. As of February 1, 2007, the Vaughn Drive Lot and Wallace Road Lot Quarterly Permit Fee was increased to $100 [ [http://www.westwindsorpa.com/ West Windsor Parking Authority: News] , accessed February 3, 2007]

History

Albert Einstein, who lived at 112 Mercer Street in Princeton, used to enjoy sitting at the station and watching the trains go by. More than once he employed trains to explain the practical effects of his General Theory of Relativity.

In 1965, a prototype for the Metroliner passed through the station at the record speed (at that time) of 164 mph on a short demonstration run. Very few sections of the Northeast Corridor were capable of handling that speed, and most had to be upgraded before Penn Central's Metroliner service was introduced in 1969.

The single car train on the Princeton Branch is referred to as "the Dinky".

References

External links

* [http://www.westwindsorpa.com/ West Windsor Parking Authority]
* [http://www.gmtma.org/pjt.htm Princeton Junction train station page on Greater Mercer Transportation Management Association site]
* [http://www.tallgeorge.com/trainpics.php#name1 Princeton Junction Photos from November, 2000]
* [http://www.trainweb.org/usarail/princetonjunction.htm Princeton Junction Amtrak & New Jersey Transit Station (USA RailGuide -- TrainWeb)]