The Most Popular Train in NYC, Explained

The map at 8:07 is inaccurate. The order is Port Jervis, Ottisville, Middletown, and then Campbell Hall.

Hi! Metro North employee here! Stations that I’m surprised aren’t seriously being discussed are passenger stations built at or near Highbridge and Sunnyside yard. Highbridge is simply because that neighborhood could really use rail options considering though on paper it’s close to Yankee and Morris Heights station, the rough terrain makes it difficult to reach them outside of car or bus. Also would make for a very quick commute to the Highbridge itself. And Sunnyside would provide a really vital transfer from the Metro North and Lirr without needing to go into Manhattan, cutting down times significantly going from say Connecticut to Long Island.

The New Haven Union Station is iconic, with a station house similar to Poughkeepsie, and the space-age tunnels to the trains

1. Wassaic = Wahh-say-ick. 2. Maybrook is west of the Hudson river, there was.a bridge that burned down that that track crossed to get to Maybrook, hence the name Maybrook line. Since the bridge burned down, that segment is no longer there, so it's called the Beacon line by MNRR. However, the bike trail maintainers still call it the Maybrook trail if I recall correctly. Follow I-84 just West of the Stewart Airport to find Maybrook.

Other thing to note: At New Haven, there is an ivy league college a mile north of the station which is Yale University. It’s also useful to getting there from NYC

The things you learn about Metro North, LIRR and the subway system are very intriguing.

1) The rail line along the west side of the Hudson is very active, but only with freight. 2) If you take a train south from Poughkeepsie: A) on Amtrak, you end up at Penn Station, B) on Metro North Hudson you end up at Grand Central. So, yes, the systems are sort of interconnected. 3) You show a picture of 153rd Street-Yankee Stadium. That is only accessible on the Metro North Hudson line. 4) Amtrak and MTA trains use both diesel and electric power. Can't run diesel into Grand Central or Penn, except in an emergency. The problem between MTA and Amtrak is that they use incompatible third-rail power shoe pickups --- Amtrak/Penn use overrunning shoes while MTA/GCT use underrunning shoes. LIRR uses overrunning, which complicates GC Madison. 5) You can get into arguments over the "Tappan Zee" Bridge. The official name is the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge. NY Turnpike Authority forgot the middle initial on the original signage and had to replace it at non-trivial expense.

LIRR and then MNRR your expanding your regional rail content alot

That was very interesting. I don't know if you are aware, but there is more history of the Port Jervis line. Back in the 1970's the rail line used to run through the downtown sections of Middletown, Goshen, Chester, Monroe and Harriman. There were stations in each village. For some reason they decided to cut off the line through the villages and transferred both freight and commuter services to the current line that loops through open countryside in Orange County. It severely affected businesses in all of those villages. It also greatly reduced ridership along this line. It did open the area in the rural area to more suburban development that served people working in NYC.

The information mentioned about Beacon / Maybrook line at the 11:00 minute mark is incorrect. While tracks are there, the line is severed in several places and is not passable. No train traffic has been on that line for over a decade and the MTA has filed for permanent abandonment of it. Currently, there is a paved rail trail adjacent to a single set of tracks (it was a 2 track right of way) from the CT/NY border all the way west to where it connect with the Walkway over the Hudson bridge.

Great video and history. The line between Beacon, NY and Danbury, CT is in total disrepair, except for the portion in Connecticut. From the NY/CT state line it is the Maybrook Rail Trail going west where it joins the Dutchess Rail Trail at Hopewell Junction. There has been talk of having a light rail commuter line from Danbury to Southeast Station in NY. But, in my opinion, this is a boondoggle.

You neglected to mention that the West of Hudson services are actually operated and ticketed by NJ Transit.

I'm surprised that you mentioned the rail trail that runs on the old Putnam line, but that you didn't mention that the entire Maybrook Trail path has now also been made into a Rail Trail. Both are part of the Empire State Trail which runs the entire length of the state. For oddball stations you also should mention the Mount Pleasant Station which exists solelt access to the cemetary.

high quality concise presentation of all necessary information

The Main Line of the Metro North heading northbound out of Grand Central Terminal crosses the Harlem River into the Bronx, not the Hudson River.

Great explainer video. Thanks!

Love how you say "Railroad." Ro-road :-)

Hi, great video! Not being a local and not knowing much about Metro North this was very enlightening. Heads up: towards the end you mention there is a proposal from Effective Transit Alliance for through running and that the study would be linked in the description, but it doesn't seem to be there 😬

Metro-North does not operate any trains west of the Hudson. All trains are operated by NJ Transit under contract to and subsidized by Metro-North over trackage right of way. NJ Transit route miles is also longer than Metro-North or LIRR, but 3rd in number of passengers.

Nice overview (except for the "Station" at the intro but I'm sure to that was to see if we were paying attention). An honorable mention should go out to the forlorn NYW&B. The abandoned northern end to White Plains would have been rather handy right now and going forward.