PATH to install PTC on 33rd Street Line

The Port Authority Trans Hudson (PATH) rail system's weekend service on the 33rd Street line in Manhattan will be suspended from early August through December to complete a project that includes installation of positive train control (PTC), the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) announced late last week.

The 33rd Street Line PATH project is part of a multiphase plan to improve the system and provide more frequent rush-hour service, PANYNJ officials said in a press release.

At the center of the project is installation of PTC. In addition to safety improvements, the work is designed to improve the service's reliability, as well as lay the groundwork for increased capacity in the future, they said.

The upcoming weekend closures will impact the Christopher, 9th,14th, 23rd and 33rd street stations.

Service on the line will be suspended from 12:01 a.m. on Saturdays until 5 a.m. on Mondays. Regular weekend service will continue on the Newark-World Trade Center (WTC) line between Journal Square and Hoboken, officials said.

Direct service between Hoboken and WTC, normally unavailable on weekends, also will be introduced.

For more information on commuter railroads' and Class Is' ongoing efforts to implement PTC, read this article from Progressive Railroading's June issue.