NX Draw - Newark, NJ

JohnFPorcaro wrote:I edited the "Annie" movie so whoever wants to, can see the NX Drawbridge from the Newark Branch scenes on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PteUzl7k ... earch=[url]

John, you brought tears to my eyes, I don't thing anyone has ever seen that bridge in better condition than in that movie. Any possibility of getting an AVI copy of the section you've created.
J

Some chips of silver paint still remain on the rails. I think its funny that the guard rails where also painted.

Next time I visit this bridge I'll get some shots focusing on the paint chips.

What year did the fire occur in the control room?

Thanks for posting that clip from Annie! Pretty cool to see the bridge in better times!

Great work as always, Sully. Looking forward to those Bergen Arches shots; I never got that close when I lived in Jersey City.

I didn't know about the connection to "Annie" either. I wonder if my first girlfriend remembers seeing that film with me at the Garden State Plaza? I suppose if I'd known the location was NX, I might have "treated" her to a field trip immediately following the movie...

The fire (one of several over the years actually) that gutted the control room occurred over 15 years ago.

Doug

Nice video clip. Why is it that people always want to escape by going up? Don't they realize that eventually you run out of up? LOL! There isn't enough money in the world to make me climb up that thing.The legal wrangling over that scene must have been monumental.

Later!
Mr. Ed

A recent shot from NX Drawbridge:

Abandoned NX Draw

I could have stared at that bridge for hours, it is an awesome sight to behold.

Nice photo, that bridge is awesome, I have done some exploring around it with my friends.

What I really don't understand why is it with the railroads is the fact that they leave unused items just to rot, cases in point, the Mcmyler Coal Dumper in Port Reading, which has'nt been used in 25 years, old telegraph poles along the ROW which have'nt been used in decades, (Which BTW is OK with me as I am an Insulator collector) The NX Draw, ect. ect.
Makes no difference to me but would'nt the railroads make money scrapping these items, and don't they have to pay property taxxes on these items whether they are being used or not? Heck, is'nt that why they ripped up the second track between Potter and Bound Brook way back when because of lack of use and to pay the taxxes for the second track?

davebdawg wrote:What I really don't understand why is it with the railroads is the fact that they leave unused items just to rot, cases in point, the Mcmyler Coal Dumper in Port Reading, which has'nt been used in 25 years, old telegraph poles along the ROW which have'nt been used in decades, (Which BTW is OK with me as I am an Insulator collector) The NX Draw, ect. ect.
Makes no difference to me but would'nt the railroads make money scrapping these items, and don't they have to pay property taxxes on these items whether they are being used or not? Heck, is'nt that why they ripped up the second track between Potter and Bound Brook way back when because of lack of use and to pay the taxxes for the second track?

Probably because the cost of removing the infrastructure exceeds the scrap value. Note, if the infrastructure is worthless (e.g., no longer used or useful) tax on it would be zero since valuation for tax purposes is based on fair market value. In the case of the second track, maintenance costs and taxes were it to remain in service probably was viewed as exceeding its value as an operating asset. Note that pulling the rails for reuse or scrap was done, as it is a fairly inexpensive process.

Ken W2KB wrote:Probably because the cost of removing the infrastructure exceeds the scrap value.

Which is the exact reason in the 70's and 80's it was not uncommon for a building/structure to get struck by "lightning" and burn to the ground. Railroads knew that it would cost too much to tear something down so they started "Fire Prevention" programs to actually destroy unneeded infrastructure. I'm sure to this day no one will admit to what was going on, but if you did the math it wasn't hard to figure out.

Hello all,

Well, this thread took me down memory lane. So many movies over the years have been shot here in NJ, but it is amazing how that one scene from a movie version of a Broadway Hit sticks so vividly in my memory all these years later.

Just makes you want to stand by the bridge and sing: http://www.elite.net/~gurpal/movie/tomorro.mid

Well, that's all for now folks......

See ya all later!

OK All well and good with the railroads not having to deal with abandoned ROW items, but what about the NIMBYS who live in the area, where I am sure the property tax is'nt cheap, talk about an Eyesore!!!
I know, the bridge was there way before them and as long as the red beacon lights are working they have no say in the matter!!!

davebdawg wrote:OK All well and good with the railroads not having to deal with abandoned ROW items, but what about the NIMBYS who live in the area, where I am sure the property tax is'nt cheap, talk about an Eyesore!!!
I know, the bridge was there way before them and as long as the red beacon lights are working they have no say in the matter!!!

I don't know. Look at that last picture http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=266691. But in my non-informed opinion, it doesn't look like Aesthetics ranks all that high on the neighbors "To Do List".

The area around NX is heavy industry, most of it still active, so I don't think aesthetics are a major concern to the neighbors. The bridge itself is most prominent when driving south on Route NJ-21 through Belleville, where it is a key point on the Newark skyline. It reminds me of so many bridges seen in the Chicago skyline (see this photo and this photo).

An aerial of NX can be seen in this link.

Notice in the aerial the company on the west side of the bridge. Did Conrail ever formally abandon the line around NX? The reason I ask is because that company on the west side has fenced in their entire area, including the old ROW. There is a guard shack controlling entry into the property, and the fence restricts any access to the piers and west approach to NX Draw.