The Morristown & Erie Railway announced today that it has partnered with Norfolk Southern and NJ Transit to operate a special excursion on Saturday, August 24, 2013 celebrating the M&E’s 110th year of operation. This trip will be operated in conjunction with Norfolk Southern’s employee appreciation program, and will be the first major mainline public rail excursion operated in the region in over a decade.
The train, named the Lehigh Limited, will depart from NJ Transit’s Hoboken Terminal, with one station stop at Newark Penn Station before continuing on Norfolk Southern’s Lehigh Line to Bethlehem, PA, where the train will stop and allow passengers off the train for a catered lunch at Norfolk Southern’s piggyback facility. After lunch, the train will return east via Phillipsburg and Hackettstown on Norfolk Southern’s Washington Secondary and NJ Transit’s Morristown Line. The train will stop at Newark Broad Street Station before completing its journey back to Hoboken Terminal.
The Lehigh Limited will consist of 16 passenger cars featuring several privately owned and restored first class cars, heritage coaches, and standard commuter coaches. Norfolk Southern and Morristown & Erie employees and their families will occupy railcars provided exclusively for their use.
The Lehigh Limited’s two first class observation cars (the Kitchi Gammi Club and the Babbling Brook) and the train’s snack car (the Birken) will be on display at Grand Central Terminal in New York City on Saturday, May 11th and Sunday, May 12th during the Parade of Trains exhibit for the Terminal’s Centennial Celebration. The cars will be open for public display from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM on both days, and M&E representatives will be on hand to answer any questions.
Tickets for the August 24th excursion will be available for sale online on May 31, 2013 at 10:00 AM at www.anniversary.merail.com. Both coach seats and first class seats will be available to the general public.
For further information on the trip, please visit www.anniversary.merail.com.