Elizabeth, NJ
Stop on the proposed 17,000-mile maglev network. Next stop: Newark, NJ (5.4 mi).
About Elizabeth
Elizabeth is a city in and the county seat of Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city retained its ranking as the state's fourth-most-populous city behind neighboring Newark, Jersey City and Paterson, with a population of 137,298, an increase of 12,329 (+9.9%) from the 2010 census count of 124,969, which in turn reflected an increase of 4,401 (3.7%) from the 120,568 counted in the 2000 census.
Source: Wikipedia summary (full article). Population and facts as published there.
Cost breakdown (proposal-scale estimates — see math)
| Item | Basis | Estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Terminal construction | Mid-size terminal — 200K–1M catchment ($1–2B range) | $1.5B |
| Land acquisition | Regional factor 1.5× on $200M base | $300M |
| Track: Elizabeth → Newark | 5.4 mi × $500M/mi | $2.7B |
| Annual operations (share) | Staffing, power, maintenance | $30M/yr |
| Stop total (excl. annual ops) | $4.5B |
Best terminal location (proposed)
the Midtown station district. NJ Transit's downtown Elizabeth station sits in a dense, transit-dependent city. Newark Liberty International Airport is minutes north — an intermodal link waiting to happen. It captures Union County's urban core.
Before / after
Aerial mock-up (illustrative, not an engineering rendering). Left: the proposed site today. Right: with the maglev terminal.
- Hillside — township on the corridor north.
- Irvington — township on the rail alignment.
- Newark Liberty airport district — intermodal link at the approach.