Expect Long Delays: NJ Transit Hit With New Disruptions Amid Track Car Fire in Hudson River Tunnel

Last night at around 09:00 PM (NY time), a tragic incident involving a fatality near Elizabeth station cased 30-minute disruptions of NJ Transit rail services into and out of Penn Station, New York.

Penn Station. Photo: Shutterstock

Early this morning at approximately 04:00 AM local time, NJ Transit has sigalled a new incident rearding "Amtrak overhead wire damage resulting from an earlier Amtrak track car fire in one of the Hudson River Tunnels".

Officials announced that NJ TRANSIT rail service will remain suspended between Penn Station New York and Newark Penn Station "with cancellations and delays" to be expected.

At the same time, Midtown Direct services have been being diverted to Hoboken.

NJ TRANSIT has also informed the oublic that rail tickets and passes will be cross honored by NJ TRANSIT and private carrier bus and PATH at Newark Penn Station, Hoboken and 33rdStreet.

Customers should visit thw NJ Transit website for more alternate service information.

Main, Bergen County, Port Jervis and Pascack Valley Line rail service are also bypassing Secaucus due to the same suspension between Penn Station and Newark Penn Station. 

In parallel, North Jersey Coast Line rail service connecting South Amboy will not operate today, May 29, 2026, because of "equipment availability resulting from service suspension."

Amtrak Northeast has also issued the following travel advisory: "Due to unforeseen track and signal maintenance resulting from a now extinguished fire in the New York area, all services traveling south of New York (NYP) are temporarily suspended.

This suspension is anticipated to be in place until noon at a minimum. Services traveling north of New York (NYP) are expected to experience lengthy delays. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this may cause. Updates to follow as more information becomes available."

The latest events join a series of other incidents that have caused major disruptions to NJ Transit rail services. 

Earlier this week, NJ TRANSIT faced major disruptions after the Newark Draw Bridge malfunctioned and a separate Conrail derailment affected River Line service. Last week, NJ TRANSIT services were suspended into and out of Penn Station after a brush fire broke out near one of the Hudson River tunnels.

On May 14, 2026, service at Penn Station was suspended "following a fire near the terminal," causing major disruption for thousands of commuters across New York City.