(The following story by Frank Kummer appeared on the Philadelphia Inquirer website on March 15.)
PHILADELPHIA — South Jersey’s first new rail service in three decades opened to the public yesterday with aficionados clambering aboard railcars under the light of a silver crescent of moon.
They clicked digital cameras and panned with camcorders to capture the maiden voyage of NJ Transit’s $1.1 billion diesel-powered River Line, which has been fraught with political fights and residential revolts stretching back a decade.
Riders snatched up souvenirs, and many were so eager to own a piece of history that they paid $1.10 for tickets even though there was talk that they could ride for free.
“I wanted to take part in this lovely ride on a new transportation system,” said Larry Waples, an auto mechanic from Woodbury and model railroader who proudly displayed his ticket, which showed he was the third person to board. “Thank you for spending that billion dollars. I’m enjoying it.”
The light-rail system completed its inaugural round-trip between Camden and Trenton, including turnaround time, in about 21/2 hours – on schedule and without a hitch.
The first passengers boarded on Delaware Avenue at the Tweeter Center on Camden’s waterfront at 5:45 a.m. After 34 miles and 20 station stops, they arrived in Trenton just before 7. They returned to the waterfront at 8:20 a.m.
“We’re train dorks,” admitted Christina D’Ambrosio, 20, of Philadelphia. She boarded the train with her boyfriend, Walt Weber, 24, of Collingswood. “It’s just interesting to look at the history of transit in a place like Philly and see how the city was run by the trolley for years. Now the system is in a shambles, and workers can’t even get a decent contract. So we just had to ride on this.”
NJ Transit officials estimated there were 7,000 passenger trips from the line’s opening until 3 p.m., translating to 3,500 individual riders. Around midday, standing-room-only crowds began causing some minor delays.
Many of those who boarded one of four 90-foot-long, Mercedes-Benz cars said they wanted to experience local history. It is the first passenger rail service most of the towns have seen since 1963, when the Camden & Amboy line closed for lack of riders.
The train experienced no technical glitches. But a half-dozen protesters at the station in Riverton, Burlington County, carried signs reading: “The Train to Nowhere” and “The Loser Train.” The line has been criticized as a waste of taxpayers’ money.
The line’s creation stretches back to 1994 when state officials in the Whitman administration and elected officials seriously began planning a new South Jersey mass-transit system.
A Camden-to-Glassboro run was initially pushed to alleviate congestion on Route 42. But public opposition in some towns and political maneuvering in others helped reroute the line along the Delaware River as an engine to spur economic development in a string of aging towns, mostly in Burlington County.
The line, with its debt, costs triple its original projections in the mid-’90s and is more than a year overdue. Projected daily ridership of 2,950 people is half of original forecasts made in 1996. NJ Transit expects the line to generate $1.5 million in sales in its first full year of operation. Meanwhile, taxpayers will shell out $73 million annually to subsidize it.
Burlington County officials, who pushed for the line, say that such criticism is unfair, and that the rail system will eventually help transform the area.
Smiling enthusiasts who boarded the brightly lit, sparkling clean, quietly running railcars yesterday agreed. They were not troubled by the cost because, they said, the need for public transit is so great.
Eddie Ruberte, 27, of Mount Laurel, roused his two daughters, Evanna, 6, and Anadie, 4, from bed at 4 a.m.
“We wanted to be on the first ride,” said Ruberte, who boarded on Camden’s waterfront. “I read that the rail line was finally going to open. I told my daughters they’d have to get up early.”
“Awesome,” is how Evanna described the ride.
Tod Kimmel raced from his Burlington City home to catch the first train, missed it because he got lost, then raced back home to board there so he could still make the system’s virgin run.
“I’m the first person to have the terrible misfortune of missing a train this morning,” the nonetheless cheerful Kimmel said.
Kimmel, who is opening an art gallery this month on High Street in Burlington City, handed out colorful souvenir cards replicating a cardboard cutout, folding train toy that he made.
Richard Roel, 67, a retired tug captain from Westville, boarded at the waterfront.
“I’ve followed all the articles,” he said. “But I also like public transportation. It’s just a necessity. My feeling is that you can’t keep putting cars on the road.”