Dock Bridge

{{Infobox NRHP

| name = Dock Bridge

| nrhp_type =

| image = Dock Bridge - Newark, NJ.jpg

| caption = Amtrak Dock Vertical Lift bridge.

| location = Passaic River
Newark - Harrison
New Jersey

| coordinates = {{coord|40|44|9|N|74|9|43|W|display=inline}}

| locmapin = USA New Jersey Hudson County#New Jersey#USA

| map_label = Dock Bridge

| label_size =

| label_position = top

| label_background = transparent

| built = 1935

| architect = Waddell & Hardesty; Waddell, Dr.J.A.L.

| architecture = Through-Truss Lift Bridge

| added = October 3, 1980

| area = {{convert|1|acre}}

| refnum = 80002484{{NRISref|2009a}}

| designated_other1_name = New Jersey Register of Historic Places

| designated_other1_abbr = NJRHP

| designated_other1_link = New Jersey Register of Historic Places

| designated_other1_date = July 21, 1979

| designated_other1_number = 1227{{cite web|title=New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Essex County|url=http://www.nj.gov/dep/hpo/1identify/nrsr_lists/essex.pdf|publisher=New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - Historic Preservation Office|page=12|date=2011-09-06|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170809194220/http://www.nj.gov/dep/hpo/1identify/nrsr_lists/essex.pdf|archive-date=2017-08-09}}

| designated_other1_num_position = bottom

| designated_other1_color = #ffc94b

}}

{{Infobox bridge

|fetchwikidata=coordinates

| name = Dock Bridge

| carries = Amtrak, NJ Transit (West span)
and PATH and Amtrak/NJ Transit (East span)

| crosses = Passaic River

| design = pair of through-truss
vertical lift bridges

| num_track = 3 (West span),
3 (East span)

| track_gauge = {{Track gauge|ussg|allk=on}}

| structure_gauge = AAR

| clearance_below = {{convert|24|ft|m|2|abbr=on}} (closed)
{{convert|135|ft|m|2|abbr=on}} (open)

}}

Dock Bridge is a pair of vertical lift bridges carrying Amtrak, NJ Transit, and PATH trains across the Passaic River at Newark, Essex County and Harrison, Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. It is the seventh crossing from the river's mouth at Newark Bay and is {{convert|5.0|mi}} upstream from it.{{cite web|title=Lower Passaic River Restoration Project Commercial Navigation Analysis|publisher=United States Army Corps of Engineers|date=2010-07-02|url=http://passaic.sharepointspace.com/Public%20Documents/2010-07-29%20USACE%20Lower%20Passaic%20River%20Commercial%20Navigation%20Analysis.pdf|access-date=March 19, 2012|archive-date=March 19, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150319155357/http://passaic.sharepointspace.com/Public%20Documents/2010-07-29%20USACE%20Lower%20Passaic%20River%20Commercial%20Navigation%20Analysis.pdf|url-status=dead}} Also known as the Amtrak Dock Vertical Lift, it is listed on the New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places.

History

The bridge was built by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) for its main line. The west span carries three tracks and opened in 1935 along with the west half of Newark Penn Station. The lift span is {{convert|230|ft|m|0}} over bearings (clear channel {{convert|200|ft|m|0|disp=or|sp=us}}), the longest three-track lift span in the world when built.{{cite news|title=Newark Dedicates Its New Terminal; New Bridge Also Ready|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1935/03/24/93682031.pdf|newspaper=The New York Times|date=March 24, 1935}} The east spans opened in 1937 when the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad (H&M, later called PATH) shifted its rapid transit trains from the Centre Street Bridge to the newly built station.{{cite news|title=New Station Open for Hudson Tubes|url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0B14FB3A541B728DDDA90A94DE405B878FF1D3|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 20, 1937|page=1}} With the opening of the eastern span, the PRR closed Manhattan Transfer station in the Kearny Meadows, where previously steam and electrical trains were changed and passengers could transfer to trains to New York Penn Station on the PRR or to Hudson Terminal on the H&M.

In 2023, the federal government provided a $300 million grant for the rehabilitation of the Dock Bridge, and Amtrak agreed to provide $75 million in matching funds.{{cite web | last=Wilson | first=Colleen | title=NJ gets $675M from feds for rail improvements to cut delays | website=Bergen Record | date=November 6, 2023 | url=https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/transportation/2023/11/06/nj-gets-675m-from-feds-for-rail-improvements-to-cut-delays/71475576007/ | access-date=April 29, 2025}} The renovation included repainting, repairing structural steel, replacing the wooden fenders around the bridge's support piers, and adding a cathodic system to reduce the corrosion of the piers. That April, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced plans to reduce the project cost by $140 million.{{cite web | last=Wilson | first=Colleen | title=Dock Bridge rail bridge in NJ repair plans downsized by feds | website=Bergen Record | date=April 24, 2025 | url=https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/transportation/2025/04/24/dock-bridge-rail-bridge-nj-repair-plans-downsized-feds/83214460007/ | access-date=April 29, 2025}}{{cite web | title=FRA, Amtrak revise plans for rehabilitation of Dock Bridge | website=Trains | date=April 22, 2025 | url=https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/fra-amtrak-revise-plans-for-rehabilitation-of-dock-bridge/ | access-date=April 29, 2025}}

Description

The west span carries three tracks exclusively used by Amtrak and NJ Transit for Northeast Corridor intercity and commuter traffic between Newark and New York City. The east span carries two PATH tracks used by PATH's Newark-World Trade Center service and one NEC track shared by Amtrak and NJ Transit. Due partly to its use of the Dock Bridge, PATH is legally a commuter railroad under the jurisdiction of the Federal Railroad Administration even though it has long operated as a rapid transit system.{{Cite news|url=https://www.railwayage.com/safety/siemens-lands-path-cbtc-contract/|title=Siemens lands PATH CBTC contract|last=Vantuono|first=William C.|date=October 27, 2009|work=Railway Age|access-date=June 11, 2018|language=en-US}}{{cite web|url=https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-151BR/html/GAOREPORTS-RCED-95-151BR.htm|title=Amtrak's Northeast Corridor: Information on the Status and Cost of Needed Improvements|date=April 13, 1995|website=U.S. Government Publishing Office|access-date=June 11, 2018}}

The lower {{convert|17|mi}} downstream of the {{convert|90|mi|adj=on}} long Passaic River below the Dundee Dam is tidally influenced and navigable. When closed the bridge has a vertical clearance of {{convert|24|ft|m}} above mean high water and opens to clear {{convert|135|ft|m|abbr=on}}.U.S. Coast Guard, New York, NY (May 28, 2009). [http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-12383.pdf "Drawbridge Operation Regulations; Passaic River, Harrison, NJ, Maintenance. Notice of temporary deviation from regulations."] Federal Register, {{USFR|74|25448}}. It is infrequently lifted and, prior to 2014,{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/PATHTrain/status/509377125959630848|access-date=September 9, 2014|title=Due to the opening of the Amtrak Dock Bridge, service on the NWK-WTC line is suspended}} had not received a request for a river traffic opening since 2004. In 2011 regulations were changed so that it need not be open on demand (as it previously had{{cite web|url=http://cfr.vlex.com/vid/117-passaic-river-19757052|title=33 CFR 117.739 - Passaic River|access-date=August 21, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812205238/http://cfr.vlex.com/vid/117-passaic-river-19757052|archive-date=August 12, 2014}}) but with a 24-hour notice.{{cite web|url=http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-10-21/pdf/2011-26549.pdf|title=Federal Register (Vol. 76, No. 204) October 21, 2011 Rules and Regulations|website=GPO.gov|access-date=November 18, 2017}} During four-year removal of dredged materials from the Passaic the bridge is expected to open upwards of 10 times per day.{{cite web|url=http://www.nj.com/traffic/index.ssf/2014/10/amtrak_and_nj_transit_fear_passaic_river_dredging.html|title=Fears that Passaic River dredging could delay rail commuters|website=NJ.com|last=Higgs|first=Larry|date=October 29, 2014|access-date=November 18, 2017}} In 2020 Amtrak requested that bridge remain in closed position until such time as it can be rehabilitated.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nj.com/news/2020/08/85-year-old-train-bridge-in-newark-delays-riders-amtrak-working-on-plan-to-fix-the-problem.html|title = 85-year-old train bridge in Newark delays riders. Amtrak working on plan to fix the problem|last=Higgs|first=Larry|date = August 15, 2020|website=NJ.com}} Amtrak requested permission from the United States Coast Guard in January 2025 to keep the bridge lowered for 120 days; the railroad ultimately wanted to keeping it lowered permanently, so trains could traverse the bridge without delays.{{cite web | last=Higgs | first=Larry | title=This N.J. train bridge gets stuck open. Soon, it’ll stay closed permanently. | website=nj | date=January 11, 2025 | url=https://www.nj.com/news/2025/01/this-nj-train-bridge-gets-stuck-open-soon-itll-stay-closed-permanently.html | access-date=April 29, 2025}}

{{wide image|Dock Bridge Harrison Newark June 2015 panorama.jpg|1500px|The Dock Bridge connecting Harrison and Newark}}

References

External links

[https://amtraknewera.com/gateway/dock/ Dock Bridge Rehabilitation] | Amtrak
[https://bridgestunnels.com/location/dock-bridge/ Dock Bridge] at Bridges & Tunnels
[https://wikimapia.org/3309877/DOCK-Drawbridge-Interlocking-Tower-Closed Dock Drawbridge and Interlocking Tower] at Wikimapia

{{Crossings navbox

|structure = Crossings

|place = Passaic River

|bridge = Dock Bridge

|bridge signs =

|upstream = Centre Street Bridge

|upstream signs = 25px

|downstream = Jackson Street Bridge

|downstream signs = 20px

}}

Category:Bridges completed in 1935

Category:Bridges in Hudson County, New Jersey