For many Weehawken residents, the Hudson Bergen Light Rail has become a popular means of transportation to the surrounding waterfront communities. Thousands of people travel the tracks either to North Bergen or to Hoboken and south every day. But not long ago, the Lincoln Harbor stop on the Light Rail was still a sparkle in Weehawken’s eye.

It was almost exactly five years ago, on Jan. 8, 2004, that the Light Rail made its very first test run down the tracks through Lincoln Harbor after over 15 years of planning. Although the test run went smoothly and all systems were operational, the terminal would not be open for public use until September of that year.


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The project was not without challenges.
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The planned 90-foot-long train cars were equipped with modern heating and air conditioning, shuttling a maximum of 68 passengers from Weehawken past the Ninth and Second Street stations in Hoboken to the Hoboken Terminal every 15 minutes.

But the project was not without challenges.

The rockface of the Palisades presented the project with one of its greatest hurdles. Securing the rocks on the cliff took time, and was a primary concern to ensure a safe crossing below.

By early January of 2004, the task of securing the rocks was “virtually completed” according to Charles Ingoglia, NJ Transit’s director of public affairs for Light Rail construction, and the project was on schedule.

The Lincoln Harbor station in Weehawken had already been constructed and needed only a few more minor adjustments. According to Mayor Turner, the test run was the culmination of an “odyssey” that had begun back in 1987.

Laying the tracks

Before 2004, the Light Rail ran through Hoboken and Jersey City but did not yet extend north to Weehawken and into Union City.

According to Mayor Turner, the plan to increase the length of the Light Rail began with Governor Tom Kean’s “Circle of Mobility,” an initiative to encourage regional mass public transportation. The deal included expanded bus use, but did not mention the Hudson Bergen Light Rail until a committee of determined citizens convinced the appropriate agencies that the Light Rail was needed in the area.

Seeing the train glide through Lincoln Harbor five years ago was a testament to the many people who worked to see the project through to fruition, Turner said.

In addition to the new Light Rail terminal, other forms of mass transportation were also being planned back then. The New York Waterway Ferry terminal at Port Imperial had not been yet been built. It was scheduled to be completed by the end of 2004, and would also house another Light Rail terminal.

The 31,000 square-foot facility was finally opened in May of 2006, tying both the Light Rail and NY Waterway transportation systems together.

Back to the future

Five years later, it’s almost unimaginable not to see trains shuttling residents to and from the Lincoln Harbor area.

“The Light Rail has been very successful,” Mayor Turner said. “One of the things we tried to do was to make sure the mass transportation systems were in place before any further development of the waterfront took place. With the Ferry Terminal and the Port Imperial station, we now have an intermodal transportation system, and the waterfront projects have turned out even better than expected.”

In the coming years, Weehawken and the surrounding municipalities hope to expand the Light Rail even further.

“Now, we’re starting the preliminary studies to further extend the Light Rail to Secaucus and eventually the Meadowlands,” Turner said. “We hope to see further extension in the next few years.”