Construction has broken ground on the Portal North Bridge, the long-delayed replacement of an 111-year-old rail bridge connecting Secaucus and Kearny, New Jersey above the Hackensack River. The project is expected to last approximately five and a half years.
The existing two-track movable swing-span bridge was completed by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1910. Prior to the pandemic, the train span was the busiest in the Western Hemisphere, carrying more than 450 NJ Transit and Amtrak trains and roughly 200,000 passengers daily. The aging bridge has been the cause of delays, particularly when the span malfunctions while opening and closing for maritime traffic.
The new Portal North Bridge will be a fixed span that will not open or close, to eliminate the risk of malfunction. The bridge will rise 50 feet over the river and span nearly 2.5 miles of the Northeast Corridor.
Rendering of the New Portal North Bridge – Courtesy of the NJ Governor’s Office
Aerial rendering of the new Portal North Bridge – Courtesy of the NJ Governor’s Office
United States Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg joined officials from Amtrak and NJ Transit at a groundbreaking ceremony for the project, which represents a major milestone in the Gateway Program. When complete, the multi billion-dollar program will double rail capacity between Newark and New York.
In October 2021, NJ Transit approved a contract with Skanska and Traylor Bros. Construction for the new Portal North Bridge. The joint venture’s contract is valued at more than $1.56 billion, the largest award in NJ Transit’s history.
The contract costs will cover construction of retaining walls, deep foundations, concrete piers, structural steel bridge spans, rail systems, demolition of the existing bridge, and related incidental work.
Project costs are funded by the US Department of Transportation, Transportation Trust Fund, New Jersey Turnpike Authority, and Amtrak. In January 2021, Governor Murphy also signed a Full Funding Grant Agreement that secured $766.5 million in Federal Transit Administration funding to complete the project.
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This project is long overdue. I have been delayed by bridge problems several times. Many years ago, there was a terrible tragedy when the bridge was open and the driver of a train from Penn Station apparently became disabled and did not stop. There was a “dead man” device that had to be squeezed or the train would automatically stop, but this had been defeated by a rubber band.
The other critical rail item is the new Hudson tunnel. The present one is a century old and rises and falls with the tides. Sadly, the new project has only two tracks when four would be more prudent.
Awesome story—thanks!
Very nice to see.
Why only 2 lanes on the bridge?
Hi Haru,
This bridge is the Portal “North” Bridge. There is a second Bridge (planned) that will be called the Portal “South” Bridge in the future.
Finally! Now they really need to get the new tunnel tubes under the Hudson started before different politicians cancel it.
There is thought of building a twin bridge to the south of the old one with two additional tracks.
3 actually
I can’t believe it still only has two tracks. This is a huge bottle neck on the northeast corridor that adds thirty minutes to every train coming from the south. At least four is necessary
Joe,
The second Bridge is still in the planning phase and will be called the Portal “South” Bridge. Track speeds will are planned to be increased on the future Portal North.