Work on the Manhattan Bridge.

[railfan365]

Background: For 4 years from 1985 to 1989, the tracks on the north side of the Manhattan Bridge were rebuilt. then for 12 years, exept for a 2-3 week period in 1990, the trachs on the south side were rebuilt. Thn from mid-2001 to early 2004, the north side tracks were redone again.

Questions: In what way was the south side of the bridge in such bad shape that it took that long to rebuild existing railroad tracks? In addition, how was it that the first round of redoing the north side so poorly done that it had to be done again that soon?

[Port Jervis]

The closure of the south side (Broadway) tracks are less disruptive to the system than the closure of the north side (6th Ave) tracks. The south side tracks were closed for a combined 12 years, the north side 5 years.

The north side tracks were closed only when they HAD to be closed, the south side tracks were closed as a result of the bridge being incapable of handing both sides until the rebuild was completed in 2004. The bridge suffered when trains on both sides twisted the structure over time, something which was not in play when one side only was open. That became painfully obvious in the fall of 1990, when service was temporarily restored on the Broadway side, but had to be ended after 3 months due to the particular twisting element I described.

[jlr3266]

Actually, trains running on one side is worse. The 1990 re-closure was from the fact that little to no repair work was performed on the track framing in the 80's. Service was finally restored, only to be shut down a few months later when extensive corrosion of the steel framing immediately on the approach spans was discovered. I confirmed the initial findings and the repairs were added to the next rehab contract in 96. The steel in question were inverted U-shaped built-up members with ties sitting between them on angles. The steel was in terrible condition. More memory at work than steel itself!

[neroden]

The 1990 re-closure was from the fact that little to no repair work was performed on the track framing in the 80's.

Shows the importance of maintenance!

[R36 Combine Coach]

The closure of the south side (Broadway) tracks are less disruptive to the system than the closure of the north side (6th Ave) tracks. The south side tracks were closed for a combined 12 years, the north side 5 years.

The north tracks were closed 1985-88 and 2001-04 (6 years) plus partial off-peak closure in 1995 for a half year. For the south tracks, they would remain out of service from 1988-90 (two years), then two brief months of service followed by almost another 11 years.