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Atlantic City Express Service

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Atlantic City Express Service
GE Genesis diesel locomotive leads ACES train through Elizabeth express down the Northeast Corridor to Atlantic City.
Overview
Service typeInter-city rail
StatusDiscontinued
LocaleNew York City, New Jersey
PredecessorAtlantic City Express
First serviceFebruary 6, 2009
Last serviceSeptember 18, 2011
Former operator(s)NJ Transit Rail Operations
Route
TerminiNew York Penn
Atlantic City
Stops1
Average journey time2 hours, 40 minutes
Service frequencyFriday to Sunday only
On-board services
Class(es)Coach, first class, private lounge
Disabled accessYes
Seating arrangementsReserved
Catering facilitiesCafé
Baggage facilitiesLuggage racks
Technical
Rolling stockGE Genesis P40DC & ALP-44 locomotives
Bombardier MultiLevel Coaches
Track owner(s)Amtrak, NJ Transit
Route map
Northeast Corridor & LIRR Main Line
to Boston & Greenport
Sunnyside Yard
East River Tunnels
Amtrak
skipped
Newark Light Rail Port Authority Trans-Hudson Amtrak
skipped
Metropark
Amtrak
Metuchen
Edison
New Brunswick
Amtrak
Jersey Avenue
Jamesburg Branch
Princeton Junction
Amtrak
Hamilton
32.5 mi
52.3 km
Trenton River Line (NJ Transit) NJ Transit Amtrak
New Jersey
Pennsylvania
skipped
Levittown
Bristol
Croydon
Eddington
Cornwells Heights Amtrak
Torresdale
Holmesburg Junction
Tacony
Bridesburg
Frankford Junction
Northeast Corridor
to Philadelphia
skipped
River Line (NJ Transit)
Cherry Hill
21.4 mi
34.4 km
Lindenwold
Lindenwold Shops
27.5 mi
44.3 km
Atco
Hammonton
Egg Harbor City
Absecon
Atlantic City

The Atlantic City Express Service (ACES) was an inter-city rail service, operating from February 2009 until September 2011. It was operated by New Jersey Transit under contract and funded by the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, with support from the Borgata, Caesars, and Harrah's casinos. The train provided summer seasonal service between New York City and Atlantic City three days a week, operating along the Northeast Corridor and Atlantic City Line. The train was formally cancelled on March 9, 2012.

Background

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With the success of NJT's commuter service to Atlantic City, talks about direct service to New York were discussed. In June 2006, the board of New Jersey Transit accepted a plan for an express service between Atlantic City, New Jersey and New York Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan, for a three-year trial initially slated to begin in 2007 (Newark Penn was not initially intended as a stop, but it would be added during the planning stages).[1] Because of delays in acquiring the cars and preparing the needed motive power (the 8 cars for this service were part of a larger 329-car order, and the four diesel locomotives were acquired from Amtrak), the service did not begin until February 2009.

The fleet was composed of eight bilevel rail cars carrying both ACES and NJ Transit markings, with service funded by the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority and three casinos, Caesars, Harrah's, and the Borgata.[2] Each train contained 300 seats with 4 cars per train. The multi-level cars' interior was customized for the ACES service, adding reclining leather seating across all classes and upper decks were dedicated to first-class seating in a 2x1 arrangement with at-seat food and beverage service. Trains also featured rentable private lounge space for groups of four and for coach passengers a small café offered food and beverages for sale.[3]

In January 2011, service was suspended until May, citing low ridership and a $6 million loss in the first year of operations.[4] Service resumed May 13, 2011 and ended September 18, 2011.[5] The formal discontinuation of the route was announced on March 9, 2012.[6]

The ACES passenger cars were converted to regular NJT cars by Bombardier between 2013 and 2014. They re-entered NJT service in mid-2014.[7]

ACES fares

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Tickets for the ACES service were priced on a dynamic pricing scale, with tickets varying between $29 and $69 for one-way coach travel, first-class service available for a $20 upgrade from the coach fare, and lounge rental available for a $200 to $300 upgrade from the coach fare.[8]

Route

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Trains picked up passengers at New York Penn Station and Newark Penn Station, then ran non-stop to/from the Atlantic City Rail Terminal in about two-and-a-half to three hours.

Typically, southbound trains departed New York pushed by an ALP-44 electric locomotive and led by a dormant GE P40DC diesel locomotive until Frankford Junction in North Philadelphia. At this junction in North Philadelphia, the diesel engine started, the train reversed direction and was pushed by the P40DC along the Atlantic City Line. Northbound, the P40DC pulled the train to Frankford Junction, where the pantograph on the ALP-44 was raised, and the electric locomotive pulled the train up the Northeast Corridor to New York.[9]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "NYC to Atlantic City express train will stop in Newark". New York Daily News. Associated Press. March 16, 2008. Retrieved January 5, 2011.
  2. ^ Smothers, Ronald (June 20, 2006). "Atlantic City And Rail Line Agree to Offer Direct Service". The New York Times. Retrieved January 5, 2011.
  3. ^ "Atlantic City Express Service schedule" (PDF). Casino Reinvestment Development Authority. Summer 2011. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  4. ^ Murray, Lucas (January 5, 2011). "Hiatus planned for fast rail line to Atlantic City". The Courier Post.
  5. ^ "ACES rail line between Atlantic City and New York shuts down for fall and winter". Press of Atlantic City. September 15, 2011. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 14, 2012.
  6. ^ "NJT announces the formal discontinuation of Atlantic City Express Service". NBC 40. Associated Press. March 9, 2012. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved March 9, 2012.
  7. ^ "Bombardier Change Order Docs" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-05-02.
  8. ^ Salkin, Allen (December 16, 2008). "A Luxury Train, Bound for Atlantic City". The New York Times. Retrieved January 5, 2011.
  9. ^ Alan, PeterDavid. "New Jersey Remembers 'The Seashore’s Finest Train'", Railway Age, March 17, 2020. Accessed January 17, 2024.