Cape May Line

The Cape May Line is an NJ Transit commuter rail line connecting Philadelphia with Cape May. The line runs mostly on Conrail's Beesley's Point Secondary, and uses GP40PH-2B trains and Comet coaches since the line is not electrified.

History

The line to Cape May was built in 1894 by the Tuckahoe and Cape May Railroad, reorganized as the Cape May Railroad, and operated by the Philadelphia and Reading Railway's Atlantic City Railroad in 1901 and later Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines (PRSL) in 1933. At one time, the rail line was known as "The Steel Speedway To The Shore”. Eventually in 1976, it became part of Conrail, which ended passenger service on the line on October 2, 1981, due to poor track conditions and limited funding from the New Jersey Department of Transportation. Freight service ended on October 10, 1983. Conrail then sold the line to New Jersey Transit as their Cape May Branch.

In 1996, after the restoration of commuter rail services on the Atlantic City Line, NJ Transit rebuilt the Cape May Branch and began running passenger services on the line. In 1998, the line to Cape May was restored.

On March 1, 2012, NJ Transit was notified by New Jersey State Police, advising them that theft of track material had occurred on their Cape May Branch in Dennisville. The investigating trooper informed them that several individuals associated with the theft had been arrested and charged with indictable offenses. Arrested on Monday, March 5, were a father and son team from the Villas section of Lower Township, New Jersey, along with a third individual from Rio Grande.

Several days later, NJ Transit employees conducted a detailed track inspection of the entire area of the theft, which consisted primarily of the removal of tie plates and spikes. This inspection concluded that the area of the theft encompassed approximately 6,800 feet (1 1/4 miles), or 75 percent of the total number of tie plates and spikes in that particular section of track. In their actions to remove the tie plates and spikes, the perpetrators also damaged and destroyed numerous cross ties.

In 2022, the vandalized part of the rail line was rebuilt with new tracks and ties; service resumed in 2024.