new jersey geographer » Atlantic City

MAC URISA and posts from the conference

John Reiser — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 12:00:21 +0000

I’ll be at MAC URISA in Atlantic City from the 4th until the 6th. On the 4th, I’ll be conducting a introductory-level workshop on Distributed GIS. On Tuesday the 5th, John Hasse and I will be at the Interactive Expo presenting our “Changing Landscapes” report and interactive maps. Wednesday the 6th, I’ll just be enjoying the conference. The materials from the conference will be available on my presentations page.

I decided to finally hop on the Tumblr bandwagon. I’ll be using it to post pictures and short notes while on-the-go. To me, Tumblr seems like a good middle ground between blogging and tweeting, and that’s how I’ll be using it. My Tumblr blog is at notes.njgeo.org or njgeo.tumblr.com. My most recent posts (tumbls?) will also show up in the sidebar of this blog. Look for updates from the conference and if you’re planning on attending, make sure to say hello!

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Post tags: Atlantic City, conferences, MAC URISA

The Blue Comet

John Reiser — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 00:50:21 +0000

In my previous post, I mentioned the Central Railroad of New Jersey. The Blue Comet is likely the most memorable service from that fallen flag. Running from the Communipaw Terminal in Jersey City, across southern Newark Bay into Elizabeth, then down the Raritan Bay shore and the coast to Whiting, and then on to Winslow Junction, the Blue Comet provided quick, reliable service to Atlantic City. The line was legendary and any one that grew up in South Jersey with even a passing interest in rail has heard of the line. It’s often lauded by rail fans as an example of the Golden Age of Rail – dining car service, long (but comfortable) trips spent relaxing in style. It’s a sign of what we had and lost.

I’m sure someone will point out that the Aces Train is not the Blue Comet, likely dismissing it as a pale imitation. Aces does have a lounge car and cars different from the rest of NJ Transit’s rolling stock. It does manage to go through three states (NY, PA and NJ) but its route is surprisingly only 10 miles longer than that of the Blue Comet. Aces Train makes it all the way to New York Penn, while the Blue Comet required an initial ferry trip. The Blue Comet also made a new extra stops (Elizabeth, Shrewsbury, Whiting and more) than the one-stop-at-Newark Aces.

If rail fans want to see the golden age of rail return, they need to get out and embrace this line, whether they actually patronize the line or not. The introduction of services like Aces (run by public corps like NJ Transit and Amtrak, no less) are a sign that recreational rail patronage, once again, is a real possibility.

The Blue Comet and Aces Train in Google Earth

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Post tags: Atlantic City, Blue Comet, Google Earth, New York, Winslow Junction

ACES begins operating on February 6th

John Reiser — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:46:06 +0000

ACES, the express rail service between New York and Atlantic City begins operations on February 6th. NJ Transit is operating the service. The service will actually cross the river into Pennsylvania and get as far south as North Philadelphia before crossing over the Delair Bridge on to the same set of rails used to operate the Atlantic City Line. The former Central Railroad of New Jersey would have provied a shorter route for the service, however the track has been removed along portions of the right-of-way.

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Post tags: ACES, Atlantic City, Atlantic City Line, Delair Bridge, Mass Transit, new jersey, New Jersey Transit, New York, rail, train