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  • Beach Drawbridge, Atlantic City

  • Discussion related to New Jersey Transit rail and light rail operations.
Discussion related to New Jersey Transit rail and light rail operations.

Moderators: lensovet, Kaback9, nick11a

 #1416188  by philipmartin
 
NJT is putting operators back on this bridge. This swing bridge has been operated from the MMC (Meadows Maintennce Complex) in Kearny.
For those interested, there was a wreck there in 1906. The railroad was the West Jersey and Seashore in those days, part of the PRR. It had recently been electrified, third rail, from the terminal in Camden. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1906_At ... rain_wreck" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
The article linked to says that the bridge went up and down; my guess, having operated a a swing bridge (DB,) is that only the mitre rails did that, lifting to clear the associated land mitre rails so the bridge could be swung.
 #1416192  by SemperFidelis
 
Having read an old book othe accident, and having seen some pictures of the wreck, I am inclined to believe it was, indeed, a lift bridge and not a swing bridge...but my memory is fading fast and I am by no means an authority on the subject.

Either eay, the railroad was held liable AFTER the bridgetender had been indicted for manslaughter for the accident. The bridgetender on duty (as well as other tenders and the builders of the bridge) had noted that the rails did not align properly when the bridge was lowered into place. The rails were supposed to alighn automatically but had to be hammered into place by the operator. This condition was notwd in the records of the bridge. Somehow...those records failed to appear for the grandy jury trial of the bridge operator and the poor man was, after other proceedings, sentenced to six years in prison.

Luckily, a short time after sentence was passed, an investiagtion associated with the grand jury's appeared at the PRR bridge in question and ordered the bridge tender to open and close the bridge mulitple times. None of those openings or closings produced a satisfactory (rails properly aligned automatically) result. After some proceedings, the original bridge tender was freed and the railroad corporation was brought up on similar charges.
 #1416662  by philipmartin
 
train2 wrote:Why are they putting operators back? That is an interesting little detail you left out?
I heard a rumor that the operators at the MMC were missing calls for openings.
 #1417108  by steemtrayn
 
MMC? Or ROC?