Port Authority Transit Corporation (PATCO) on May 7 officially opened an approximately $19.4 million Operations Control Center in Lindenwold, N.J., which it said will serve as the central hub for monitoring and managing train operations, communications, customer service coordination, incident response, and overall operational oversight across the 14.2-mile “Speedline” system.
The facility replaces the original Center Tower operations center in Camden, N.J., which dates to the transit system’s 1969 opening. Advances in communications and fiber-optic technology now allow operations to be centralized at the Lindenwold facility, improving “operational flexibility and long-term reliability,” according to PATCO, which serves 5.9 million riders annually between South Jersey and Philadelphia with 14 stations across Camden County and Center City Philadelphia; it connects with Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority and New Jersey Transit. The Center Tower facility will remain in place as a secondary operations center, it said.
The new facility includes:
- An operations control room for dispatching and rail operations oversight.
- Improved communications and monitoring systems.
- Redundant systems to support operational resiliency and service continuity.
- Dedicated space for customer service and operational support staff.
- Consolidated workspace for multiple PATCO transit departments, bringing operations personnel, traffic analysts, train schedulers, and support staff “to improve coordination and communication across departments and operational areas.”
- A dedicated, secure high-bandwidth operational network and integration with PATCO’s systemwide radio, video surveillance, access control, public address, centralized traffic control (CTC), and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems.
According to PATCO, the new control center was also designed to support its “continued modernization efforts and future system enhancements.” It noted that Delaware River Port Authority’s current five-year capital program includes roughly $805 million in planned investments to modernize, maintain, and enhance its bridges, transit system, and transportation assets.
Facility construction began in 2023, and PATCO said the project earned a New Jersey Leading Capital Construction Project Award in 2024 from the New Jersey Alliance for Action.
“In many ways, this facility is the nerve center of the PATCO system,” PATCO General Manager John Rink said. “Every train movement, communication, and operational decision runs through this building. This investment strengthens our ability to deliver safe, reliable, and efficient service for our riders every day, while giving our operations team the modern tools and technology needed to keep PATCO trains moving safely and smoothly. This facility works behind the scenes, but riders will experience the benefits every day through safer, more reliable, and more efficient service.”
Further Reading:
- Pop-Up Metro: New Model for New Starts
- Rail and Track Infrastructure Replacements Cause PATCO Schedule Adjustments
Join Railway Age at Next-Gen Rail Systems (formerly Next-Gen Train Control) on Oct. 21-22, 2026, in Philadelphia, Pa. The agenda for the rail industry’s single-most important communications and signaling event since 1995 will encompass the entire system, examining how signaling and train control technologies are modified and improved by telematics, artificial intelligence, deep data analysis, cybersecurity measures, and more. Presented by leading experts, Next-Gen Rail Systems will feature in-depth technical sessions and comprehensive project updates on evolutionary and revolutionary developments in advanced and emerging technologies.
The post PATCO Opens New Operations Control Center appeared first on Railway Age.