Metropark station

Metropark station is an intermodal transportation hub on the Northeast Corridor in the Iselin section of Woodbridge Township in Middlesex County, New Jersey that is located 24.6 miles southwest of New York Penn Station. It is owned and operated by NJ Transit and serves Amtrak and NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line. NJ Transit runs peak period 'loop' buses in coordination with train schedules.

Metropark
Metropark station from the parking deck, April 2015
General information
Location100 Middlesex–Essex Turnpike
Iselin, Woodbridge Township, New Jersey
United States
Coordinates40.5681°N 74.3298°W / 40.5681; -74.3298
Owned byNew Jersey Transit
Line(s)Amtrak Northeast Corridor
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks4
ConnectionsBus transport NJ Transit Bus: 48, 801, 802, 803, 804, 805
Construction
Parking3,615 spaces
Bicycle facilitiesYes
AccessibleYes
Other information
Station codeAmtrak: MET
Fare zone10 (NJT)
History
OpenedNovember 14, 1971[1]
Rebuilt2007–2010 (refurbishment)
Passengers
20127,447 (average weekday)[2] (NJT)
FY 2022225,661 annually[3] (Amtrak)
Services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Philadelphia
toward Washington, D.C.
 Acela Newark Penn
toward Boston South
Trenton
One-way operation
 Crescent Newark Penn
toward New York
Trenton
toward Savannah
 Palmetto
New Brunswick
toward Harrisburg
 Keystone Service Newark Airport
toward New York
New Brunswick
toward Norfolk, Newport News or Roanoke
 Northeast Regional Newark Airport
toward Boston South or Springfield
Trenton
toward Washington, D.C.
 Vermonter
weekends
 Newark Penn
toward St. Albans
     Cardinal does not stop here
     Carolinian does not stop here
     Pennsylvanian does not stop here
     Silver Meteor does not stop here
     Silver Star does not stop here
Preceding station NJ Transit Following station
Metuchen
toward Trenton
 Northeast Corridor Line Rahway
toward New York Penn Station
Former services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Trenton
toward Washington, D.C.
 Metroliner
Until 2005
 Newark Penn
toward New York

The station is near the interchange of Route 27 and Garden State Parkway near exits 131 and 132.[4][5] and has a multi-story parking facility that is open at all times.[6][7]

The station, built by the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) and the United States Department of Transportation, opened on November 14, 1971, as Garden State Metropark. It was built as a suburban park-and-ride stop for the then-new high-speed rail Metroliners.

History
Amtrak train at Metropark, January 1976

Metropark was one of two park-and-ride infill stations proposed in the 1960s for use by the new Metroliners, the other being Capital Beltway in Lanham, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. The two stations were originally named Capital Beltway Metropark and Garden State Metropark; these were shortened to Capital Beltway and Metropark. Both were conceived as public-private partnerships. Under a plan put forward in late 1968 by the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) the state would contribute $648,000 toward the cost of the station, then estimated at $1.4 million.[8][9]

Amtrak service to Metropark began on November 14, 1971.[1] The station's cost had increased to $2.6 million, shared by NJDOT and the United States Department of Transportation. It had two 850-foot (260 m) high-level platforms and had 820 parking spaces. It was next to the Garden State Parkway to allow easy access by automobile; a large business park – "the first Edge City in the world to grow from a parking lot" – soon grew near the station.[10] Commuter trains continued to use Iselin station, half a mile east.[11][12]

The station was officially renamed Harrison A. Williams Metropark Station on July 30, 1979, in recognition of Senator Williams' support for its construction.[13] After his 1981 conviction for bribery and conspiracy in the Abscam scandal, local officials campaigned to have his name removed from the station, though it remained until at least 1984.[13][14][15][16] Northbound on- and off-ramps were added to the Garden State Parkway at Exit 131A in November 1986 to improve station access.[17]

Renovation
Signage after renovation

In January 2007, NJ Transit announced a nearly $30 million renovation plan for the station, to be completed by 2010.[18] Reconstruction was completed by Anselmi & DeCicco, Inc. of Maplewood, NJ in summer 2009, and cost $47 million. Climate-controlled shelters and LCD train information systems were installed, platforms were extended to accommodate 12-car trains, canopies were lengthened and the station building was enlarged as part of the project.[19][20]

Ridership

Since 2001, Metropark has been the busiest New Jersey Transit station apart from the city terminals. Many commuters from the South Shore of Staten Island utilize the station to commute to Manhattan.[21] Along with Princeton Junction in 2006, Metropark was the first non-terminal station to have over 7,000 weekday boardings.[21]

Layout and services
An NJ Transit train at Metropark

The station is served by NJ Transit Rail Operations Northeast Corridor Line. The station has two high-level side platforms flanking the four tracks of the Northeast Corridor. Amtrak's long-haul services and most Keystone Service trains that utilize the Northeast Corridor bypass the station via the inner tracks, as do some NJ Transit express trains. Until 2005, the eastbound Pennsylvanian also stopped at Metropark. Amtrak trains skip most other stations between Trenton and Newark Penn Station, but many trains stop at Metropark despite having to switch to the outside (local) tracks to do so. Pairs of 45-mph crossovers (interlockings MENLO and ISELIN) just east and west of the station were added about 1986 to make this easier.

Five peak-hour "Metropark Loop" routes, operated by NJ Transit as bus routes 801–805, connect the station to the surrounding office parks and residential areas.[22]

References
  1. "Train Service Starts Today at Metropark". The Asbury Park Press. November 14, 1971. p. 4. Retrieved October 6, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  2. "QUARTERLY RIDERSHIP TRENDS ANALYSIS" (PDF). New Jersey Transit. December 27, 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 19, 2013. Retrieved December 27, 2012.
  3. "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2022: State of New Jersey" (PDF). Amtrak. June 2023. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  4. "NJDOT Graphic Information System Maps Middlesex" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  5. Larry Higgs (March 13, 2015). "What exit? New Parkway exit opens today as numbers change on others next week". NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
  6. "Metropark Parking". Archived from the original on June 21, 2008. Retrieved June 28, 2008.
  7. "Metropark Parking Facility".
  8. "Open Line" (PDF). Penn Central Post. February 1969. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 6, 2014.
  9. "Commuter Rail Station in Jersey to Have Parking for 776 Cars". The New York Times. December 29, 1968. p. 54. Retrieved May 30, 2010.
  10. Garreau, Joel (1991). Edge City: Life on the New Frontier. Doubleday. p. 39. ISBN 0-385-42434-5.
  11. "New 'Metropark' in Northern N.J. Timed With Metroliner Extension". Bridgeport Telegram. November 6, 1971. p. 29. Retrieved October 2, 2014 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  12. Witkin, Richard (November 12, 1971). "A Park-and-Ride Rail Station Is Dedicated in Jersey". The New York Times. p. 49. Retrieved May 30, 2010.
  13. "Name remains the same 1 year after resignation". The Central New Jersey Home News. March 6, 1983. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. "Name change for MetroPark now possible". The Central New Jersey Home News. March 12, 1982. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. "Williams begins Abscam sentence". Daily Press. January 19, 1984. p. 61 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. Scott, Jenny (February 6, 1984). "Who named Metropark? name-changers ask N.J." The Record. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. "New Parkway interchange opens at Woodbridge station". Asbury Park Press. November 20, 1986. p. 15.
  18. Chang, Kathy (January 4, 2007). "Metropark to Get $30 Million Makeover". Edison-Metuchen Sentinel. Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved May 30, 2010.
  19. Moss, Adam (June 11, 2014), Metropark Station, Wikimedia Commons, retrieved December 12, 2015
  20. "CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON A NEW METROPARK STATION" (Press release). New Jersey Transit. April 23, 2007. Archived from the original on June 14, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  21. "New Jersey Transit rail boarding numbers 2007-1999". Berkeley. Retrieved June 28, 2008.
  22. "Transit Advisory Metropark Loop-Bus Route Nos. 801, 802, 803, 804 & 805" (PDF). New Jersey Transit. October 2013. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
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