MONTCLAIR, N.J. — New Jersey Transit inaugurated its Montclair Connection service today, opening a $63 million station and a stretch of track that transit officials said would add more than 4,000 new riders and cut travel times to New York City by linking two existing lines, according to the New York Times.
The Montclair Connection unites the Boonton line of the old Lackawanna Rail Road and Midtown Direct line of the old Erie Rail Road just a few miles northwest of Montclair’s new Bay Street Station.
Gov. James E. McGreevey opened the station in a ceremony today, noting that it would allow riders from Morris and Passaic Counties — as well as other Essex County commuters on the Boonton line who can now travel only to Hoboken — to connect with trains going directly to Midtown.
Work on the connection began years ago, but the idea of bridging a 1,500-foot separation between the two lines is more than 70 years old, according to transit officials and advocates. For years it was blocked by both the privately run railroads and the bus companies that would have lost riders.
When New Jersey Transit was created in 1979 and took over the two lines, the connection faced local opposition and a lawsuit by Montclair residents who feared a safety hazard and opposed the demolition of housing for the project.
Mayor Robert Russo of Montclair said he and others dropped their opposition some years ago when they were able to negotiate changes in the state’s transportation plan to ease safety and traffic fears.
They also successfully pressed for the construction of housing to replace what was lost, as well as a new fire station near the new train station.