Portal Bridge North

The Portal Bridge North is being constructed to replace the existing Portal Bridge. This is part of the larger Gateway Project, which is an ongoing program to modernize and expand the Northeast Corridor between Newark, New Jersey, and New York City. When it is fully completed, this project will double the number of passenger trains by expanding the line from 2 tracks to 4 tracks. It will also increase the speed limit of the corridor from 60 mph to 90 mph. The first phase of the project includes three projects which are all under construction. These projects are the Hudson Tunnel, Portal Bridge North, and Hudson Yards Concrete Casing. The next phase is in Final Design, and includes the Dock Bridge, Sawtooth Bridge and Harrison Fourth Track. The project also includes the Portal Loop South, Secaucus Expansion & Bergen Loops, NJ Transit Storage Yard, and NY Penn Station Capacity Expansion, which are in concept development.

The old Portal Bridge is a major bottleneck along the corridor, primarily due to its moveable swing span. The Portal Bridge North will replace the two tracks that are currently on the old bridge and eliminate the bottleneck. The new bridge is a high-level fixed span bridge with a clearance of 50-feet above the river. It eliminates the need for a moveable span, and all the associated problems. The Portal Bridge North is anticipated to open in 2026. This project also includes a twin bridge, the Portal Bridge South, which will carry an additional two tracks.

The bridge is one of the first network tied arch rail bridges in the United States, with each arch is being approximately 400 feet long, 85 feet tall and 55 feet wide. The entire bridge, including the arches, is 2.44 miles long. The bridge also includes the “duck-under” structure, which is built into the approach spans. This structure will allow the westbound trains on the Portal Bridge South to pass under the Portal Bridge North as they leave New York City.

This bridge got a lot of attention when the three arches were floated down the Hudson River. The five-million-pound arches were assembled in Port of Coeyman’s, NY. The were then loaded onto barges and floated down the Hudson River then back up the Hackensack River to reach the project location. The arches had to pass through the opening of the old bridges swing span, which was further complicated since the new piers block the swing span from opening fully.