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Amtrak Service Takes (Baby) Steps Forward

February 23, 2026

Although it will need modifications for modern railroad operation, preliminary surveys find the Paulinskill Viaduct to be in “good” condition despite years of neglect. Photo by Joe Phalon.

Amtrak passenger train service between Scranton and New York City by way of Blairstown took a couple baby steps this week, but the only aspects set in concrete so far are the Paulinskill Viaduct and the Delaware River Viaduct, both of which, Pennsylvania officials said, appear to be in good shape.

On Thursday, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, known informally as PennDOT, gave an update on the issues in an online meeting.

The proposed service took a major step forward last year when it was cleared for the second step in a three-step process. The route is one of only five that have made it this far in the Corridor Identification and Development Program conducted by Amtrak and the U.S. Department of Transportation to identify new rail corridors.

Arrow showing steps of progress — Amtrak service between Scranton and New York City is one of just five routes out of more than 50 that have made it to Step 2. If the proposal reaches Step 3, it essentially means it will happen. The remaining steps on the chart indicate planning and construction. But keep in mind, until you can actually board a train in Scranton (of Blairstown) and ride it to New York, nothing, of course, is absolutely certain. Image courtesy PennDOT. Photo by Joe Phalon.

If the proposal reaches the third step, additional project development work such as engineering; environmental reviews; and the preparation of bid documents, budgets, and timelines. The third stage could lead to hundreds of millions of dollars for rail construction and related work becoming available, PennDOT officials said.

Amtrak issued a detailed study for the resumption of passenger service between New York and Scranton previously in early 2023.

The report claimed the regions surrounding the restored service would see up to $84 million each year in economic activity. The study also said the service would include $20 million in user benefits such as decreased travel time.

In 2024, the township committees of both Blairstown and Knowlton endorsed the project. Blairstown officials noted that historically, Blairstown is a railroad town that is named after John I. Blair, the railroad baron who shaped the railroad industry through much of Warren County and the rest of the United States.

The last passenger train to stop in Blairstown was in 1966. A number of proposals to resume service have surfaced over the years, many serious, others fantastical. Regardless of their validity or lack thereof, all died on the vine because they lacked the same thing: money.

Updated map of the proposed passenger train service between Scranton and New York City. Image courtesy PennDOT.

So, why is this proposal any different? Again, money. But this time the money is there. Most of it, anyway. Funding for the project could be paid through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, passed in 2021, along with funding from New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Harrison Warren, a transportation specialist with PennDOT said during the presentation that the money is there. It’s a matter of making a good case to receive it, and he believes the Scranton-New York service is a top contender.

“Until funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure law and prior to the creation of this program, there wasn’t any dedicated federal program focused on passenger rail restoration,” Warren said. “This corridor ID has received strong public support to advance this restoration from the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the state of New Jersey, the Federal Railroad Administration, Amtrak, and the public.”

As for those two concrete bridges on the route, including the Paulinskill Viaduct, Todd Euston, an engineer with KCI Engineering Service, which is working on the project, said both the Paulinskill and the Delaware crossings look to be in “good” condition, based on preliminary surveys.

More detailed studies are expected to begin within a few months.

Old viaduct with passing traffic — The Delaware River Viaduct was also found to be in good shape according to Pennsylvania officials. A more detailed engineering study will take place in the next few months. Photo by Joe Phalon.

Despite that prognosis, the structure has sat largely abandoned and unmaintained since the tracks were removed in 1984.

Officials in Knowlton Township, where the Paulins Kill Viaduct is located, have long expressed concern about the bridge becoming an “attractive nuisance” over the years. The 120-foot tall structure built of steel-reinforced concrete has been a destination for hikers, climbers, and bungee jumpers. The bridge has also been the site of numerous deaths over the past decades, both accidental and suicidal.

Euston said the bridge will require numerous modifications to bring it up to current railroad standards, and town officials hope they will include making the structure more resistant to trespassers, who have proven to be a burden to local services.

Last March, rescuers from the Knowlton Township Fire and Rescue Co. No. 1 and the New Jersey State Police spent hours extricating a hiker who fell into the labyrinthine passageways and maintenance tunnels within the columns of the structure. He was rescued uninjured, and after being checked out at a hospital was arrested for trespassing.

While no firm dates for service were promised, PennDOT officials said if approvals and planning continue as they have, trains could be in operation by 2029.

Joe Phalon, Contributing Writer

Contributing Writer

Joe brings decades of journalism experience to the Ridge View Echo, covering everything from local school boards to the U.S. Supreme Court. A former National Law Journal editor and Columbia Law School press officer, he now enjoys telling community stories in Blairstown, where he lives with his wife, Rose, and their two dachshunds.