Mountain View station (NJ Transit)
| Company type | NJ Transit rail station |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transportation |
| Founded | 1873 |
| Headquarters | Wayne, New Jersey , United States |
| Products | Rail transport services |
Mountain View, also identified as Mountain View–Wayne, is a stop on the Montclair–Boonton Line operated by NJ Transit in Wayne, New Jersey. Prior to the 2002 establishment of the Montclair Connection, this station was served by the Boonton Line. Situated on Erie Avenue near the intersection of U.S. Route 202 and Route 23 in downtown Wayne, it functions as one of two rail stations in Wayne since January 2008, alongside the Wayne Route 23 Transit Center located at the Westbelt interchange.
History
Mountain View station was originally one of two Wayne stops on the New York and Greenwood Lake Railway, which was under the operation of the Erie Railroad. This line extended from Erie's Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City to Sterling Forest at the border between New Jersey and New York. The second Wayne station was positioned further north at Ryerson Avenue. In 1935, service was truncated to Wanaque–Midvale station in Wanaque, New Jersey. Following the 1960 merger between Erie Railroad and Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, initiatives began in 1963 to discontinue the former Lackawanna Boonton Branch, which also contained a Mountain View station. That same year, the Erie-Lackawanna Railroad linked the Boonton Line with the Greenwood Lake lines at Mountain View Junction. The portion of the Boonton Branch east of this junction was abandoned, while service on the Greenwood Lake line was limited to a shuttle north of Mountain View.
The original wooden depot built by Erie was torn down and replaced with an Armco metal shelter on the platform featuring two tracks: one serving westbound Boonton Line trains toward Lincoln Park, and another for the Wanaque-Midvale shuttle operating on the former Greenwood Lake line including Ryerson Avenue station. Shuttle operations ceased in October 1966 alongside closure of Ryerson Avenue station. Tracks south of Pequannock Township were removed; currently, the shelter and canopy rest upon what was once the shuttle track. The rerouted track onto the Boonton Branch remains active as a single track passing through Mountain View.
Station layout and services
Mountain View station consists of a single low-level side platform adjacent to one revenue track. The facility is compliant with ADA standards and provides amenities such as bike lockers and a ticket vending machine.
The station area encompasses four parking lots managed by NJ Transit with a combined total of 389 spaces, including eight designated for handicap accessibility. The primary parking area on Erie Avenue contains 228 spaces, encompassing all handicap-accessible spots. Additional parking is available nearby with lots holding 17, 26, and 118 spaces located on Williams Street, Greenwood Avenue, and close to Route 23 respectively. Parking at all lots is complimentary. Mountain View is also served by NJ Transit bus route 871, which was previously part of Morris County Metro services.
Train service does not run on weekends at Mountain View; weekend Montclair-Boonton Line trains terminate at Bay Street station in Montclair. Nonetheless, six special holiday trains traveling to Lake Hopatcong station make stops at Mountain View.
Bibliography
- Adams, Arthur G.; Baxter, Raymond J. Railroad Ferries of the Hudson: And Stories of a Deckhand. Fordham University Press, 1999.
- Catlin, George L. Homes on the Montclair Railway, for New York Business Men: A Description of the Country Adjacent to the Montclair Railway, Between Jersey City and Greenwood Lake. Montclair Railway Company, 1873.
- Whittemore, Henry. History of Montclair Township, State of New Jersey: Including the History of Families who Have Been Identified with Its Growth and Prosperity. The Suburban Publishing Company, 1894.