Portal bridge happenings

[Overmod]

GeoffS

isn't it amazing once upon a time the Pennsylvania railroad built all of this!

Yes ... and with their own money, and not optimized for through freight service, too!

But then again, it's much more amazing to me that at no time did any other major railroad, or consortium of railroads, actually build either a bridge or tunnel across the harbor for any other service, passenger or freight.  (Some of them explicitly not needing the sort of movable or high-level bridge involved at Portal...)

Only a relatively small part of the channel was subject to war-department clearance requirements or 'tunnel preference' (as at New London for fairly obvious reasons) and for many years CNJ, for one, had an enormous four-track bridge a surprising way across, and B&O an easily multitracked route from Hunter Tower across a relatively short bridge and then grade separated multiple track all the way to either tunnel or bridge at the Narrows.  Yet, even today, all we get are fancier lighterage schemes while more and more trucks make the area roads functionally impassable even for their own purposes much of the time.

[GeoffS]

Food for thought - isn't it amazing once upon a

time the Pennsylvania railroad built all of this!

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

blue streak 1

Throw a tomato at the chief executive

You might have to wait in line for a couple of weeks.

[blue streak 1]

Portal bridge fails 2 times iin 36 hours. Riders are upset with NJT.  This time it is Amtrak's fault and more imortantly the NJ and federal governments.  Throw a tomato at the chief executive

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2018/10/anger_at_nj_transit_overflows_for_second_straight_day_as_111-year-old_bridge_fails_again.html 

[blue streak 1]

More information on push for getting Gateways projects going.  This article also acknowledges the Portal bridge potential failure results.  Now it is all up to Trump and congress.  Any bets ?

http://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2017/06/01/gateway-builders-forge-ahead-amid-trump-administration-uncertainty-112467

 

[blue streak 1]

Now work begins on another Gateway project item.  This follows the tunnel box work west of NYPS.

 

The first contract for the North Portal bridge work has been awarded by NJT subject to available funds,

http://www.njtransit.com/tm/tm_servlet.srv?hdnPageAction=PressReleaseTo&PRESS_RELEASE_ID=3139 

This is for preliminary work that has to be completed before the actual bridge work can start.  Moving 138kV line,fiber optic cables,  access roads, work pier, et.

Quote from contract announcement.

 

 

"The Early Action Construction project includes the realignment of a 138kV transmission pole, the installation of new fiber optic cable poles, the construction of a construction access structure known as a finger pier, the construction of a steel bridge structure over the Jersey City Municipal Utility Authority water main, and the construction of a retaining wall just west of the Frank R. Lautenberg Station at Secaucus Junction."

 

It would appear that to build a construction road to the river the bridge over the water main has to be first.  Protection of water main from heavy trucks, cranes, dozers , dredges, etc.