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Yesterday, the New Jersey Transit board gave agency officials the green light to begin environmental and planning work on the Northern Branch line between Tenafly and North Bergen.

NJ Transit plans to operate self-propelled diesel multiple unit cars (DMU) on the line between Tenafly and North Bergen, where passengers could then connect to the Hudson-Bergen light-rail system. In the future, the agency plans to link the Northern Branch to the Trans-Hudson Express Tunnel — which currently is being designed — providing passengers direct access to mid-town Manhattan.

NJ Transit officials previously considered operating light-rail equipment on the CSX Transportation-owned line, but — unlike self-powered DMU’s — light-rail trains cannot operate concurrently with freight trains. NJ Transit would have had to install dedicated track and overhead electrical wires.