The dominant Pennsylvania Railroad was no exception; its passenger trains ran to Exchange Place in Jersey City.

[6][7] H&M trains stopped at Exchange Place, Grove Street, Summit Avenue, Manhattan Transfer, and Harrison.

The "McAdoo Reds", as the MP-38s were called, ran only between Manhattan Transfer and New York City,[5][7] carrying the logos of PRR and H&M to show their partnership.

[8] Until 1922 the PRR also operated a shuttle service from Manhattan Transfer to New York Penn, using six converted MP-54 cars.

[15] Manhattan Transfer was built mainly because PRR trains needed to switch to electric locomotives.

In 1913 the PRR's board voted to electrify its main line in the Philadelphia area using an 11 kV overhead catenary system.

[16] This had to do with the PRR's cumbersome operations at Broad Street Station in Philadelphia, where trains had to enter and leave the terminal from the same side, and congestion frequently arose because of the length of time needed for steam locomotives to switch directions.

[20] Contracts to electrify the PRR tracks south of Manhattan Transfer with 11 kV overhead wires were awarded in 1929.

[24] (The branch to South Amboy remained steam for a couple more years, so a few engine changes continued at Manhattan Transfer.)

The site of the eastbound platform was partly replaced by a yard for the Central Railroad of New Jersey (CNJ) in 1967.

[29][30][17] The tributes to Manhattan Transfer station include a jazz vocal ensemble formed in 1969.

PRR trains continued southwest[6] East of the station, the PRR tracks split to the northeast and continued 8 miles (13 km) to New York Penn, while the H&M tracks split to the southeast for 7 miles (11 km) to Exchange Place before entering the Downtown Hudson Tubes to Hudson Terminal in New York City.