Line(s) NWK–WTC
HOB–WTC Opened 1909 | Tracks 2 Rebuilt 1989 | |
 | ||
Location Exchange Place
Jersey City, New Jersey Owned by Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Platforms 2 inter-connected side platforms
cross-platform interchange Connections HBLR @ Exchange Place
NJT Bus: 1, 43, 64, 68, 80, 81
Red & Tan: 4
A&C Bus Address Jersey City, NJ 07302, United States Owner Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Similar Newport station, Grove Street station, 33rd Street station, Pennsylvania Station, World Trade Center P | ||
Exchange Place is a station on the PATH system. Located at Exchange Place near the Hudson River waterfront in the Paulus Hook neighborhood of Jersey City, New Jersey, it is served by the Newark–World Trade Center line at all times and by the Hoboken–World Trade Center line on weekdays. The Hudson-Bergen Light Rail has a stop outside the PATH station, which is also called Exchange Place.
Contents
Original station
The original Exchange Place station opened on July 19, 1909 at the western end of the Downtown Hudson Tubes adjacent to Pennsylvania Railroad station and ferry terminal. The above ground entrance and platforms were reburbished in the late 1960s / early 1970s after the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey took over operations of the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad.
In the early years of the H&M Railroad, there were a number of incidents, including a derailment on April 26, 1942 that resulted in five deaths and over 200 injuries. In that incident, the train operator Louis Vierbucken was charged with manslaughter, as he was under the influence of liquor. Court records recount that he "began to go faster and faster, disregarding warning signals and curves" and then the train derailed at the station.
Present day
The present-day station entrance pavilion at Exchange Place was constructed at a cost of $66 million, and was dedicated on September 13, 1989. At this time, the surrounding Paulus Hook area was beginning to undergo revitalization with new office building construction.
The Exchange Place station was closed as a result of the September 11, 2001 attacks, due to water damage. Before the attacks, the station served 16,000 passengers daily. The World Trade Center station was also crucial, as that station contained a loop that enabled trains to turn around and reverse direction. New trackwork was installed at a cost of $160 million, which included an interlocking to allow the trains to switch tracks, thus enabling trains to terminate at Exchange Place. On June 29, 2003, the Exchange Place PATH station reopened, restoring services to Newark, Hoboken, and 33rd Street. On November 23, 2003, service was restored to the World Trade Center site, with the reopening of the World Trade Center station.
In February 2006, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) established a pilot project to test airport-style security screening at the Exchange Place station.
Station layout
The station entrance is located approximately 100 feet (30 m) west of the former, original station entrance. The station features three 150-foot (46 m)-long escalators that provide access to the platform level, located 75 feet (23 m) beneath street level. In 1991, an elevator was installed to make the station accessible for the disabled, in accordance to the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Hudson-Bergen Light Rail began service in April 2000, initially providing connections to Bayonne.
The station has two vestibules, each containing one side platform and one track for trains in a given direction. The platforms are connected through several corridors. There are railroad switches at the far western end of each platform, where the HOB-WTC line's tracks diverge. As a result, only NWK-WTC trains can serve the whole platform