(The following appeared on the Newsday website on March 17, 2009.)
ISELIN, N.J. — Amtrak hopes to finish repairs to downed overhead lines that delayed commuters on NJ Transit’s Northeast Corridor in time for Tuesday afternoon’s rush.
The lines came down near Metropark in Iselin Monday night.
Because of that, NJ Transit spokesman Dan Stessel says the agency had to cancel some trains because equipment and crews couldn’t get into position in the morning.
At one point, NJ Transit’s Northeast Corridor trains were running up to an hour late. Amtrak trains were running up to 20 minutes behind schedule along that stretch of track.
The delays eased once three of the four tracks became operational. By 9 a.m., service was on or close to schedule.
Amtrak does not know what brought the lines down.