Owned by New York Central Electrified Not electrified Owner New York Central Railroad Tracks 3 | Platforms 1 side platform Opened 1873 Rebuilt 1927 | |
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Location 1 Station Plaza
Ridgefield Park, New Jersey 07660 Line(s) West Shore Railroad
New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad
New York, Ontario and Western Railway Closed June 30, 1966; 50 years ago (June 30, 1966) | ||
Ridgefield Park Station, also known as West Shore Station, was railroad station in Ridgefield Park, New Jersey at the foot of Mount Vernon Street served by the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad (NYSW) and the West Shore Railroad, a division of New York Central (NYCRR) The New York, Ontario and Western Railway (NYO&W) had running rights along the West Shore and sometimes stopped at Ridgefield Park. First opened in 1883 it was one of three passenger stations in the village, the others being the Little Ferry Station to the south and Westview Station to the north. The station house, built at a cost $100,000 opened in 1927. Southbound service crossed Overpeck Creek and continued to terminals on the Hudson River waterfront where there was connecting ferry service across the Hudson River to Manhattan. Northbound near Bogota the parallel NYSW and West Shore lines diverge and continue into northern New Jersey, Pennsylviania, and upstate New York. Passenger service ended in 1966.
Contents
History
In 1866, the Ridgefield Park Railroad (a predecessor to West Shore), was established to create a right of way (ROW) along foot the western slope of the Hudson Palisades parallel to the Hackensack River from Ridgefield Park to Marion Junction, where it could use the Bergen Hill Cut to the Pennsylvania Railroad Depot on the Hudson Waterfront in Jersey City. In 1873 the Jersey City & Albany Railroad (another predecessor to the West Shore) incorporated the original Ridgefield Park Railroad ROW into its projected line. The West Shore instead built the Weehawken Tunnel (at the southern end of what became North Bergen Yard) in conjunction with the opening of Weehawken Terminal. It opened its station in Ridgefield Park in 1883. NYC's service was discontinued in 1959.
The New Jersey Midland Railway (a predecessor to the NYSW) had built a line through the Ridgefields in 1872, but with no station. It joined the Erie Railroad Northern Branch at Granton Junction near Babbit, and reached the community of New Durham. With a similar intention to reach a terminal on the Hudson River, in 1873 it built the Hudson Connecting Railroad which ran south to West End Junction, just north of Marion Junction, with access to Erie's Long Dock Tunnel and Pavonia Terminal. Passenger service on the NYSW made use of the West Shore's Ridgefield Park station to Pavonia Terminal until it was retracted to Susquehanna Transfer (near the point now under New Jersey Route 495), and eventually terminated in 1966.
Status
CSX Transportation River Line and the NYSW both operate along the freight lines that pass the station. The station house has become a commercial building. NYS&W maintains a small yard in the village. One of the so-called CP5 bridges, the CSX bridge, over Overpeck Creek has been replaced with a two-track swing bridge. As of 2015, the NYS&W bridge was slated for replacement. Numerous studies to restore passenger service on have been conducted, but not materialized. The station has been recommended for historic designation by the county historical agency. The station is a very popular location for train watchers.