Paterson Station is a New Jersey Transit commuter rail train station located on an elevated viaduct above Market Street in downtown Paterson, New Jersey. The railway through the station is double tracked, for north and south traffic on the NJT Main Line.Station layoutThe Paterson station consists of a high-level island platform spanning from Market Street to Ward Street in downtown Paterson. Handicapped passengers must access the station via an elevator located on Ward Street.The station is located in an area of Paterson near Center City Mall, the Passaic County Courthouse and county government offices, and the Paterson campus of Passaic County Community College where several city and county roads intersect with Market and Ward Streets.HistoryPaterson Station has always only served one railroad line: the Main Line of the Erie Railroad, along with its successors, the main lines of the Erie-Lackawanna Railroad (EL), Conrail legacy EL division (operated under NJDOT), and finally the present-day New Jersey Transit Main Line. However, the Main Line itself has changed substantially over the years, leading to significant changes in usage, destinations, and connections.Originally a single track at grade, the elevated station was built between 1924-30 when the Erie Railroad eliminated street level crossings on its Main Line in Paterson. The Erie Main Line ran from Jersey City to Chicago via Binghamton, Buffalo, Akron, Ohio, and Marion, Ohio. Major long distance passenger and freight trains passed through this section of track, and many of those passenger trains stopped at Paterson. This situation was stable from the inception of the station until the early 1960s, when the Erie Railroad was in major financial difficulties.
