NJ Transit train derails at Penn Station with 200 passengers aboard

NEW YORK — Friday morning's commute will be back to normal for New Jersey Transit riders after a derailment Thursday night at New York Penn Station.

The agency tweeted an update just before 4:30 a.m. Friday, reporting possible 15-minute delays into and out of New York.

Rider Carl Shellenberger said his North Jersey Coast Line traiin was "running normally...fashionably late" on Friday morning.

Nearly 200 passengers were on the NJ Transit train arriving from Long Branch, involved in a "slow speed derailment" just before 9 p.m. according to Amtrak, the owner and operator of the station.

NJ Transit said it is working with Amtrak to determine the cause of the derailment. Amtrak said its crews worked through the night to assess the damage to the infrastructure, thoroughly inspect the tracks and complete any necessary repairs. Its renewal work at A interlocking will move forward as scheduled this evening.

Passenger Rich Denison told New Jersey 101.5 he felt a small jolt as the train came to a dead stop.

"I knew immediately something was up," he said. "I have been riding long enough to understand this was unique."

He said the train was no more than 100 feet from the platform when it derailed. "Amtrak apparently refused a plan to walk us to the platform so all passengers were put on the rescue train, which had to go back through the tunnel into Jersey so we could switch over to the other tunnel," Denison said.

NJ Transit said the train was sent to make sure passengers got back to the platform safely.

"Following last night’s slow speed derailment outside Penn Station New York I am calling for a full investigation into all potential causes," Gov. Chris Christie said in a statement. "The safety of New Jersey citizens is paramount and we will do everything possible to ensure that NJ Transit and Penn Station are safe.”

The incident comes as Amtrak's $1.9 million infrastructure renewal project, which will cause major schedule changes on the Morris & Essex line, is about to begin on Monday.

Share your “Summer of Delays” experience with New Jersey 101.5 and join our commuter panel. Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com.

More from New Jersey 101.5: