Newark Branch

Yesterday on the Newark Branch about 3:30- 4:00pm. I saw NS3051 and CR3010. The CR unit had PRR on it. Does that Stand for Pennsyvania Railroad?

That would have ment a daylight run over the trestle in the park (Nutley, I believe)...I hope you had your camera!

The train you saw was the NS HC90 extra out of Croxton sent to service WAS terminal and Van Ness on the Newark Industrial.
The PRR is the ownership markings of that particular locomotive. When Conrail was split up, equipment to NS was owned by a holding company which uses the reporting marks PRR, CRDX, and another one that I can't think of at the moment. The bank that owns the ex-Conrail equipment for CSX uses the NYC reporting markings. I think the PRR 3010 was an ex-Reading unit and the PRR 3051 was a Penn Central, but I am not positive.

No, NY&LB I was working and happened to hear it heading south at Rutgers St. and about an hour or so later I heard heading back north. So I rushed up Washington St. (being careful not exceed the legal speed limit like all railfans do) and caught it as it was going over Washinhton St. But sadly I had to get back to work.

Mwy0325 wrote:No, NY&LB I was working and happened to hear it heading south at Rutgers St. .

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How many shippers are left, south of Rutgers Street? Can't be many. Back in the 1970s and early 1980s, there were several shippers from the relay tracks by the former Newark Thread plants. I believe the gravel plant would get an occasional tank car delivery, too.

Lots of ex-shippers along that route. The Kidde plant, the chemical guy next to it in Belleville, Driver-Harris, etc.

Speaking of Newark, I remember years ago that there was a bridge that went over from Newark over the Passaic river near where the old Two Guys was and another in the area of Harrision.

Are either of those still used?

Ken

The bridge over the Passaic has been locked in the open position too long ago to remember when. It was made famous by the ending of the movie "Annie" (I hope I didn't ruin the movie for anyone ).

I lived in Nutley for 3 1/2 years, and in all that time, I saw one train, and it was at night in Belleville. I had always hoped to see it cross the trestle, but I swear, I am Kryptonite to trains. I'm an avid railfan who has the power to repel trains (and I also have the power to change greeen traffic lights to yellow as I approach them)

ChooChooHead2 wrote:The bridge over the Passaic has been locked in the open position too long ago to remember when. It was made famous by the ending of the movie "Annie" (I hope I didn't ruin the movie for anyone ).

I lived in Nutley for 3 1/2 years, and in all that time, I saw one train, and it was at night in Belleville. I had always hoped to see it cross the trestle, but I swear, I am Kryptonite to trains. I'm an avid railfan who has the power to repel trains (and I also have the power to change greeen traffic lights to yellow as I approach them)

I wonder when that bridge saw its last train? I can remember seeing plenty of trains in the Belleville/Newark border near the Path Mark supermarket on Saturdays. I believe this was the Orange Branch? One day when I was a kid I walked it from Branch Brook park to the bridge that crossed over RT21. After looking down, I decided that this was a bad idea so I didn't cross it.

As far as being kryptonite to trains, perhaps you're not at the right location. Have you been to Bound Brook?

Ken

NJ Vike wrote:

ChooChooHead2 wrote:The bridge over the Passaic has been locked in the open position too long ago to remember when. It was made famous by the ending of the movie "Annie" (I hope I didn't ruin the movie for anyone ).
quote]

I wonder when that bridge saw its last train? I can remember seeing plenty of trains in the Belleville/Newark border near the Path Mark supermarket on Saturdays. I believe this was the Orange Branch? One day when I was a kid I walked it from Branch Brook park to the bridge that crossed over RT21. After looking down, I decided that this was a bad idea so I didn't cross it.

Coupla different bridges in play here. The Annie bridge, which carried the Erie newark branch through Harrison and Kearny is the bridge which has been open since the 1970s. I vaguely recall seeing it down in the mid 1970s, pre-Conrail. That line continued up along NJ 21, through Nutley and joined the DL&W Boonton Line under NJ 46 in Clifton at Paterson Jct.

The other bridge is the Erie Greenwood Lake bridge, which crossed the passaic upriver, at the Newark-Belleville border. It passes about 60 feet over the Erie Newark branch on its way to Montclair, etc. This line spins off the Erie Orange branch (Silver Lake) line at the Forest Hill station, I believe. This is the line which passes thru Branch Brook Park, and later served as the NJ Transit Boonton Line. The Greenwood Lake bridge appears in the opening credits of the Sopranos.

The Bascle Bridge over the Passaic River on the Newark Branch was last used in November of '77, prior to this there was a M-F 7 Day Shift tender assigned to the bridge. One Friday he simply received his orders to report the crew base that Monday for a new assignment. After the winter past, the mechanics of the bridge were heavily vandilized rendering the operating system usesless. If this bridge could ever be used again is a big question.

I knew the facts above as a good friend of my late father at that time owned the car service business at the bridges base. Today a used car dealer is at this site.

One issue that I can think of is could it be possible for this bridge to ever topple shut itself??. I know about the counter weights, but considering that it has been left to the ravages of nature and vandals for over 25 years could it fall??

Ken

I was told by the old Rutgers St Bridge tender (a bascule bridge) that a bascule bridge will eventually fail after a specificied number of openings if no maintenance is performed. It also always will fail with the bridge in the open position, meaning that boats were going to receive the damage not cars or trains. Someday, I guess, we will just see the concrete block fall off and the bridge slam shut.

Of course, I would expect since the Passaic is still a navigable waterway, the CG requires inspections of bridges to prevent such a thing.

I worked at American Strip Steel which is right next to that bridge for 10yrs. Never have I seen anyone inspect that bridge.

Mwy0325 wrote:I worked at American Strip Steel which is right next to that bridge for 10yrs. Never have I seen anyone inspect that bridge.

Considering that commercial traffic on the Passaic River has declined to almost nill (at this point in the river), the last "inspection" of this bridge was probally in conjunction with the movie Annie (83-84).
I also don't recall seeing any navigational lights working on this bridge for at least the past decade.

We will all have to wait and see if this bridge ever slams itself shut, wich probally will happen before we ever see it used again as either a rail bridge, a bridge as part of the proposed "rail trail", or converted to a
road bridge.

Ken