Where The Hoboken Train Stopped Before The Crash

At around 8:45 am on September 29, at least three people were killed and between 75 and 100 injured when an NJ Transit train crashed at Hoboken Terminal. So far, the cause of the accident is unknown. Where had the Hoboken train stopped before the crash? The train was traveling on the Pascack Valley Line, travelling north/south from Spring Valley to Hoboken.

According to ABC-7NY, the train that crashed was NJ Transit train number 1614. Following the Pascack Valley Line, it started this morning from Spring Valley, New York, just north of the New Jersey border, at 7:23 am. The Pascack Valley Line train follows a route south into New Jersey, stopping in Westwood, Oradell, Hackensack, Wood-Ridge, Secaucus, and a number of other smaller stations along the way, before terminating in Hoboken.

The Pascack Valley Line is a significant conduit for people commuting into New York City, as the Secaucus station is a junction for people transferring onto trains leading to New York’s Penn Station. In an interview with ABC, train passenger Corey Futterman, who was riding on one of the last cars during the crash and was uninjured, explained that a lot of passengers had disembarked at the stop before the crash. “We had just left Secaucus and that’s where about half or, if not, more than half of the train gets off the car to transfer to New York,” he said. “We were approaching Hoboken and the train did not seem to be slowing down whatsoever and then all of a sudden everything just crashed and shook.”

Train 1614 was supposed to arrive at Hoboken Terminal at 8:38, but reports say that it was running late. Jamie Weatherhead-Sal, riding between the first and second cars, told NBC 4 New York, “We approached the station, and the train just felt like it never stopped. It didn't slow down. It didn't brake.” More than 300,000 commuters travel on NJ Transit trains every weekday, and just over 15,000 board daily at the Hoboken station. Weatherhead-Sal described Train 1614 as “super-packed” this morning, and said that the Pascack Valley Line had been using “shorter trains” for a the last two weeks, adding, “For the most part, it was a typical commute.”

All rail service at Hoboken Terminal (including that of NJ Transit, HBLR, and PATH trains) is currently suspended. NJ Transit buses, private carriers, and the NY Waterway ferry are honoring rail tickets. Travelers can also use NJ Transit Light Rail.