New York New Jersey Rail

Last updated

New York New Jersey Rail, LLC
Nynjrlogosmall.jpg
Overview
Headquarters Greenville, Jersey City, New Jersey
Reporting mark NYNJ
Locale Upper New York Bay
Dates of operation2006–
PredecessorNew York Cross Harbor Railroad
Technical
Track gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length4 miles (6 kilometers) (car float) 4.5 miles (7 kilometers) (trackage)
Other
Website nynjr.com
The 65th Street Yard in Brooklyn, refurbished in 1999 by the city of New York. The refurbished yard was placed in service for car floats in July 2012. Nychr5bbtjeh.jpg
The 65th Street Yard in Brooklyn, refurbished in 1999 by the city of New York. The refurbished yard was placed in service for car floats in July 2012.
The 65th Street Yard from the harbor. Bay Ridge Float Dock jeh.JPG
The 65th Street Yard from the harbor.
A railroad car float in the Upper New York Bay, 1919. Similar barges are still used today. NYH carfloat.jpg
A railroad car float in the Upper New York Bay, 1919. Similar barges are still used today.
1912 Pennsylvania Railroad map showing cross harbor car float operations. Rail and barge routes shown on the map are largely the same as those in use a century later. NY Tunnel Extension & Connections PRR 1912.jpg
1912 Pennsylvania Railroad map showing cross harbor car float operations. Rail and barge routes shown on the map are largely the same as those in use a century later.

New York New Jersey Rail, LLC( reporting mark NYNJ) is a switching and terminal railroad [1] that operates the only car float operation across Upper New York Bay between Jersey City, New Jersey and Brooklyn, New York. Since mid-November 2008, it has been owned by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which acquired it for about $16 million as a step in a process that might see a Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel completed.

Contents

Since freight trains are not allowed in Amtrak's North River Tunnels, and the Poughkeepsie Bridge was closed in 1974, the ferry is the only freight crossing of the Hudson River south of the Alfred H. Smith Memorial Bridge, 140 miles (230 km) to the north of New York City, in a process known as the Selkirk hurdle. [2] It is the last remaining car float operation in the Port of New York and New Jersey. [3]

The railroad operates in two divisions, the Marine division and Port Jersey Rail division. [4] Its switching operations on the New York side include a short spur north to Bush Terminal which runs through the Brooklyn Army Terminal complex and then through the center of First Avenue in Sunset Park. [5] This spur is the last example of active street-running rail operations in New York City.

Operations

The Port Authority owns Greenville Yard in Greenville, Jersey City, where it connects with Class I railroads CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway, which jointly operate Conrail Shared Assets Operations' North Jersey Shared Assets Area. On the Bay Ridge, Brooklyn end, the 6-acre (2.4 ha) 65th Street Yard connect to the Long Island Rail Road's freight-only Bay Ridge Branch, which is operated by the New York and Atlantic Railway, and the New York City Transit Authority's South Brooklyn Railway. The 4 mile barge trip across the harbor takes approximately 45 minutes. The equivalent trip by truck is 35–50 miles. [6] [7]

As of 2012, the NYNJ system moves approximately 1,500 rail cars across the harbor per year. Port Authority officials suggested that the system can transport as many as 25,000 cars annually. [8] [9] NYNJ replaced two EMD GP38-2 with three low-emission locomotives from Knoxville Locomotive Works in Tennessee for $5 million. As of July 2015, the system had moved about 4900 rail cars year-to-date. [10]

History

From 1983 to 2006, the operation was known as the New York Cross Harbor Railroad ( reporting mark NYCH). Earlier predecessors include the Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal Company, Bush Terminal Railroad, New York Dock Railway, and New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad and Pennsylvania Railroad operations at Bay Ridge and Greenville.

In 1999 the city of New York rehabilitated the larger 65th Street Yard for car float operations with two transfer bridges. It was not turned over to NYCH because of a dispute over money owed the city. NYCH continued to use the single transfer bridge at Bush Terminal instead. In 2002, New York Cross Harbor Railroad revenues from railroad operations were $1,685,899. It had 48 active customers, with shipments of cocoa from docks in Brooklyn as its largest line of business. It also operated a trucking service and offered shipside and dockside service for receipt or delivery of various types of cargo, such as oversized steel beams. [6]

NYCH ceased to exist in 2006; a new company, Mid-Atlantic New England Rail, LLC of West Seneca, New York, bought the railroad and renamed it New York New Jersey Rail, LLC (NYNJ). The city of New York purchased the company two years later.

NYNJ diesel locomotive on 65th street terminal 65th Street Railyard in Brooklyn - New York New Jersey Atlantic.jpg
NYNJ diesel locomotive on 65th street terminal

The Port Authority began working with government agencies in New York and New Jersey to bring NYNJ to a state of good repair. This includes emergency work to stabilize the transfer bridge structure in Greenville, repairs to the transfer bridge and track infrastructure in Brooklyn, and procurement of ultra-low emissions locomotives and a new 30-car rail barge. [11] In May 2010 the Port Authority announced that it would purchase Greenville Yard and build a new barge-to-rail facility there, as well as improving the existing rail car float system. The barge-to-rail facility is expected to handle an estimated 60,000 to 90,000 containers of solid waste per year from New York City, eliminating up to 360,000 trash truck trips a year. The authority's board authorized $118.1 million for the overall project. [12] In December that same year the NYNJ purchased the 2.4 mile Port Jersey Railroad to imporve it's access to shippers in the Greenville port area. [13]

In November 2011 the Port Authority hired HDR, Inc. of Omaha, Nebraska to rehabilitate Greenville Yard. Work included rehabilitating the railyard and waterfront structures, including a rail barge and transfer bridge, demolishing two other bridges, designing a new barge and two new bridges, and adding 10,000 feet of track. [14] [15] In July 2012 NYNJ began operating out of the 65th Street Yard. Initial cargo included apples, home heating oil, new automobiles, and scrap metal. [16] The railroad north along First Avenue was refurbished and new tracks laid to support operations at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, including an automobile import pier and a new municipal recycling plant. [17]

On October 29, 2012 Hurricane Sandy caused major damage to the Greenville facility, undermining the transfer bridge gantries and sinking one of the car floats. The 81-year-old gantry structures were ultimately demolished. The working float bridge at Bush Terminal was transferred by barge to Greenville, where it was re-designated the Greenville Pontoon Bridge. Service was restored in late December, after 52 days of intensive reconstruction. [18]

On September 17, 2014 the Port Authority announced that it was funding a major redevelopment of the Greenville Yard, to include a new ExpressRail container terminal servicing the Port Jersey Global Marine Terminal. The Port Authority would also build two new rail-to-barge transfer bridges, purchase two new car float barges, and buy four new ultra low emission locomotives [19] [20] In November 2017, the first of the new barges, NYNJR100, was delivered to NYNJ. Built by Metal Trades, Inc., the four-track barge can carry up to 18 rail cars of 60-foot (18 m) length, with up to 2,298 long tons (2,335 tonne) of cargo. [21] The second barge, NYNJR200, was delivered in December 2018. An older, 14-car barge, the 278, is still in service. [22] The new ExpressRail container terminal opened January 7, 2019, with four tracks out of eight operational. [23] The remaining four tracks were opened on June 17, 2019. [24]

In July 2017, the Port Authority announced a $35 million study to build a Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel, suitable for freight. [25] If built, the tunnel would eliminate the need for the NYNJ ferry.

See also

New York Connecting Railroad Electrification System of New York Connecting Railroad map.png
New York Connecting Railroad

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ferry slip</span> Docking facility for a ferry

A ferry slip is a specialized docking facility that receives a ferryboat or train ferry. A similar structure called a barge slip receives a barge or car float that is used to carry wheeled vehicles across a body of water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York and Atlantic Railway</span> Short line railroad

The New York and Atlantic Railway (NY&A) is a short line railroad on Long Island, within the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of New York. It was formed in 1997 to provide freight service over the tracks of the Long Island Rail Road, a public commuter rail agency which had decided to privatize its freight operations. A subsidiary of the Anacostia Rail Holdings Company, NY&A operates exclusively on Long Island and is connected to the U.S. mainland via CSX's Fremont Secondary over the Hell Gate Bridge. It also interchanges with New York New Jersey Rail's car float at the 65th Street Yard and US Rail of New York in Yaphank, New York. Its primary freight yard is Fresh Pond Junction in Queens. It has another yard, Pine Aire Yard, in northern Bay Shore, New York. The NY&A officially took over Long Island Rail Road's freight operations on May 11, 1997, with an initial franchise for 20 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Howland Hook Marine Terminal</span>

The Howland Hook Marine Terminal, operating as GCT New York, is a container port facility in the Port of New York and New Jersey located at Howland Hook in northwestern Staten Island, New York City. It is situated on the east side of the Arthur Kill, at the entrance to Newark Bay, just north of the Goethals Bridge and Arthur Kill Vertical Lift Bridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Car float</span> Unpowered barge with railroad tracks mounted on its deck

A railroad car float or rail barge is a specialised form of lighter with railway tracks mounted on its deck used to move rolling stock across water obstacles, or to locations they could not otherwise go. An unpowered barge, it is towed by a tugboat or pushed by a towboat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oak Point Link</span> Freight rail line in New York City

The Oak Point Link, also known as the South Bronx–Oak Point Link, is a 1.9-mile (3.1 km) long railroad line in the Bronx, New York City, United States, along the east bank of the Harlem River. It connects the Metro-North Railroad's Hudson Line with the Harlem River Intermodal Yard and the CSX Transportation Oak Point Yard at the north end of the Hell Gate Bridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port of New York and New Jersey</span> Port in New York and New Jersey, United States

The Port of New York and New Jersey is the port district of the New York-Newark metropolitan area, encompassing the region within approximately a 25-mile (40 km) radius of the Statue of Liberty National Monument.

The Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel is a proposed freight rail transport tunnel under Upper New York Bay in the Port of New York and New Jersey between northeastern New Jersey and Long Island, including southern and eastern New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bay Ridge Branch</span> Freight rail line in New York City

The Bay Ridge Branch is a rail line owned by the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and operated by the New York and Atlantic Railway in New York City. It is the longest freight-only line of the LIRR, connecting the Montauk Branch and CSX Transportation's Fremont Secondary at Glendale, Queens with the Upper New York Bay at Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

The Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal was a shortline railroad and marine terminal with its main facilities and administrative offices located on 86–88 Kent Avenue in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Selkirk hurdle</span> Long freight rail route to New York City

The Selkirk Hurdle is the term used by urban planners, railroad employees, politicians, and others to describe the route that must be taken by freight trains traveling between New York City and other points in downstate New York that are east of the Hudson River, and locations in the United States to the south and west. There are no rail freight bridges or tunnels that cross the Hudson River south of Selkirk, which is 10 miles (16 km) south of Albany and the home of Selkirk Yard, a major CSX classification yard. As a result, trains from Long Island and New York City must travel 140 miles (230 km) north to cross at Selkirk before continuing on their way. Advocates claim that this detour and the inefficiencies that result force New York City to rely more heavily on relatively-inefficient trucks than most parts of the United States, where freight trains are more common. However, at least for traffic to and from the west, this route was touted for its efficiency as the "Water Level Route" by the New York Central Railroad because trains using it did not have to climb over the Appalachian Mountains, and it is still used by the New York Central's successor, CSX, for traffic to both sides of the Hudson River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port Jersey</span> Freight terminal on Upper New York Bay

Port Jersey, officially the Port Jersey Port Authority Marine Terminal and referred to as the Port Jersey Marine Terminal, is an intermodal freight transport facility that includes a container terminal located on the Upper New York Bay in the Port of New York and New Jersey. The municipal border of the Hudson County cities of Jersey City and Bayonne runs along the long pier extending into the bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upper Bay Bridge</span> Bridge in Newark and Bayonne, New Jersey

The Upper Bay Bridge, or the Lehigh Valley Railroad Bridge, is a vertical lift bridge spanning the Newark Bay in northeastern New Jersey. It is used by CSX Transportation travelling through the North Jersey Shared Assets Area of the United States rail network along the National Docks Secondary line. The bridge is just north and parallel to the New Jersey Turnpike's Newark Bay Bridge. A notable train using the bridge is the Juice Train, which originates in Florida.

Greenville Yard is a freight rail yard in the Port of New York and New Jersey. It is located on Upper New York Bay in Jersey City, New Jersey, adjacent and north of Port Jersey. Originally developed in 1904 by the Pennsylvania Railroad, it was later taken over by Conrail. It has been owned by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey since 2010. It takes its name from the former municipality of Greenville, now part of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Staten Island Tunnel</span> Incomplete rail tunnel in New York City

The Staten Island Tunnel is an abandoned, incomplete railway and subway tunnel in Staten Island, New York City. It was intended to connect railways on Staten Island to the BMT Fourth Avenue Line of the New York City Subway, in Brooklyn, via a new crossing under the Narrows. Planned to extend 10,400 feet (3,200 m), the tunnel would have been among the world's longest at the time of its planning, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Docks Secondary</span>

National Docks Secondary is a freight rail line within Conrail's North Jersey Shared Assets Area in Hudson County, New Jersey, used by CSX Transportation. It provides access for the national rail network to maritime, industrial, and distribution facilities at Port Jersey, the Military Ocean Terminal at Bayonne (MOTBY), and Constable Hook as well as carfloat operations at Greenville Yard. The line is an important component in the planned expansion of facilities in the Port of New York and New Jersey. The single track right of way comprises rail beds, viaducts, bridges, and tunnels originally developed at the end of the 19th century by competing railroads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rail freight transportation in New York City and Long Island</span>

From the start of railroading in America through the first half of the 20th century, New York City and Long Island were major areas for rail freight transportation. However, their relative isolation from the mainland United States has always posed problems for rail traffic. Numerous factors over the late 20th century have caused further declines in freight rail traffic. Efforts to reverse this trend are ongoing, but have been met with limited success.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">65th Street Yard</span> Rail yard in New York City

The 65th Street Yard, also Bay Ridge Rail Yard, is a rail yard on the Upper New York Bay in Sunset Park and Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Equipped with two transfer bridges which allow rail cars to be loaded and unloaded onto car floats, it is the last of once extensive car float operations in the Port of New York and New Jersey. Located adjacent to the Brooklyn Army Terminal, it provided a major link in the city's rail freight network in the first half of the twentieth century. It was later used as a conventional railroad yard at the end of the LIRR/NY&A Bay Ridge Branch. The new transfer bridges were constructed in 1999, but remained unused until the transfer bridges were activated in July 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ExpressRail</span> Intermodal rail facilities at New York Harbor

ExpressRail is a network of on- or near-dock rail yards supporting intermodal freight transport at the major container terminals of the Port of New York and New Jersey. The development of dockside trackage and rail yards for transloading has been overseen by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which works in partnership with other public and private stakeholders. As of 2019, four ExpressRail facilities were in operation, with a total built capacity of 1.5 million lifts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Shore Branch</span> Railroad branch in Staten Island, New York

The North Shore Branch is an abandoned branch of the Staten Island Railway in New York City, which operated along Staten Island's North Shore from Saint George to Port Ivory. The line continues into New Jersey via the Arthur Kill Vertical Lift Bridge to Aldene Junction in Cranford.

References

  1. ↑ Association of American Railroads, About the Industry: Railroads and States Archived December 1, 2008, at the Wayback Machine , 2006, accessed December 2008
  2. ↑ "Top Officials and Stakeholders Meet to Launch Project That Will Study Regional Freight Movement Issues" (Press release). Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. November 13, 2008. Retrieved October 29, 2011.
  3. ↑ Patrick McGeehan (November 13, 2014). "Truck Traffic in Mind, Port Agency Considers Plans for a Slow Boat to Brooklyn". The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  4. ↑ "New York New Jersey Rail, LLC". nynjr.com. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  5. ↑ Geberer, Raanan (March 1, 2022). "Historic Brooklyn subway cars take their last journey — Brooklyn-style". Brooklyn Eagle. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  6. 1 2 NYRR 10-K SEC filing for 2003
  7. ↑ "New York New Jersey Rail, LLC". nynjr.com. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  8. ↑ Barry Newman (May 20, 2012). "New York's Last Cross-Harbor Railway Chugs On as Alternative to Trucks: Barges Float Boxcars Into Town, Sludge Out; Cocoa Beans at the Bottom of the Bay". The Wall Street Journal.
  9. ↑ NJTPA Freight Committee, October 2012
  10. ↑ Steve Strunsky (August 18, 2015). "N.J. is home to the last rail cars moved by water in the East (PHOTOS & VIDEO)". NJ.com. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  11. ↑ Ken Spahn (April 2, 2009). "Rail Freight Development Program" (PDF). Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 28, 2011. Retrieved August 18, 2009.
  12. ↑ "Port Authority Board Approves Purchase and Redevelopment of Greenville Yards" (Press release). Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. May 18, 2010. Retrieved October 29, 2011.
  13. ↑ "Federal Register :: Request Access". unblock.federalregister.gov. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  14. ↑ Vantuono, William C. (November 16, 2011). "HDR hired by PANY&NJ to rehab yard". Railway Age. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Hires HDR to Rehabilitate Greenville Yard". HDR, Inc. November 16, 2011. Archived from the original on December 15, 2014. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
  16. ↑ Winnie Hujuly (July 19, 2012). "65th Street Rail Yard Reopens in Brooklyn". The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  17. ↑ "South Brooklyn Marine Terminal". NYCEDC. September 12, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  18. ↑ "New York New Jersey Rail". Members.trainweb.com. December 21, 2012. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  19. ↑ Port Authority Board Approves Major Redevelopment Of Greenville Yard To Improve Cargo Movement In The Port, Port Authority Press Release Number 190-2014, September 17, 2014
  20. ↑ New York-area port authority to build rail transload facility, improve cross-harbor car float system, Progressive Railroading, September 18, 2014
  21. ↑ Moore, Kirk (November 10, 2017). "Metal Trades delivers New York rail float barge". WorkBoat. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
  22. ↑ Moore, Kirk (January 16, 2019). "Metal Trades delivers second rail barge to New York". WorkBoat. Retrieved January 18, 2019.
  23. ↑ Hugh R. Morley (January 7, 2019). "New rail link deepens NY-NJ port's Midwest reach". JOC.
  24. ↑ "PORT OF NY/NJ AT STRONGEST COMPETITIVE POSITION IN DECADES WITH COMPLETION OF EXPRESSRAIL NETWORK, CAPSTONE OF MULTI-BILLION PORT MODERNIZATION PROGRAM". The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. June 17, 2019. Retrieved June 19, 2019.
  25. ↑ Geiger, Daniel (July 14, 2017). "With Gateway in limbo, Port Authority pushes ahead on separate tunnel project". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved July 20, 2017.

40°40′44″N74°4′25″W / 40.67889°N 74.07361°W / 40.67889; -74.07361

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.