Dock Yard Improvement Expansion and Electrification

[DutchRailnut]

you may want to correct last statement, the connection to mainline is not a wye, no way to go eastbound .

[EuroStar]

So they are replacing the superstructure on all three spans of the Ann St bridge? That seems weird to me. Assuming that the Marshal St bridge remains one track, did they really need the space between Ann and Marshal streets for the yard? Unless there is a deeper reason that I cannot phantom from Google Earth images, spending money for bridges to gain what amounts to about 200 ft of track seems very wasteful to me. Any insights?

[Ridgefielder]

So they are replacing the superstructure on all three spans of the Ann St bridge? That seems weird to me. Assuming that the Marshal St bridge remains one track, did they really need the space between Ann and Marshal streets for the yard? Unless there is a deeper reason that I cannot phantom from Google Earth images, spending money for bridges to gain what amounts to about 200 ft of track seems very wasteful to me. Any insights?

Single-tracking the Ann St. bridge would require reconfiguring the interlocking- the switches for the south end of Dock Yard are south of Ann St. That would probably prove more costly, given the complexity, than replacing a few steel beams on the bridge.

[hcobin]

Dock Yard is north of Ann St. If you're familiar with Norwalk, it's east of where the new mall is being constructed, and south of Science Rd. and the city's transfer station. Here are some photos of how the yard area looked in February:

Dock Yard looking south from Science Rd.
Dock Yard -- south from Science Rd.jpg (1.8 MiB) Viewed 5884 times

[mrobinson]

Been keeping an eye on this topic, not a regular poster at all but I stumbled onto these images at nycsubway and thought it may be of interest. https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/showpix?nsta=14133" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Supposedly taken in April, 1974. Note that one is of the "original" Dock Yard.
Perhaps someone can confirm the current status of the pit in the one photo. Presumably, it was constructed by GE as part of the M2 delivery as it is quite clear that these tracks were being used for delivery "punch list" work.

[Ridgefielder]

Been keeping an eye on this topic, not a regular poster at all but I stumbled onto these images at nycsubway and thought it may be of interest. https://www.nycsubway.org/perl/showpix?nsta=14133" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Supposedly taken in April, 1974. Note that one is of the "original" Dock Yard.
Perhaps someone can confirm the current status of the pit in the one photo. Presumably, it was constructed by GE as part of the M2 delivery as it is quite clear that these tracks were being used for delivery "punch list" work.

The pit is long, long gone. It would have been right around here: https://goo.gl/maps/zGXpiqLjJNx.

I'm pretty sure that all this trackage, both up on the embankment and the stub-ended tracks, was considered Dock yard by the NYNH&H. The lower-level trackage, the tower and the freight house were all removed in the late 80's, around the time when the Maritime Aquarium opened.

Incidentally, there are a couple of unusual autos in the photo of the yard and the burned-out tower. Behind the tower is a Triumph TR-6, while in front is something I can't identify-- maybe a Peugeot? Thought it was a Corvair wagon at first but the wheels are wrong.

[Backshophoss]

Have they finally started work on relaying the track and switches in Dock Yard??
How long before they hang new catenary wire in the yard??

[RearOfSignal]

Have they finally started work on relaying the track and switches in Dock Yard??
How long before they hang new catenary wire in the yard??

No, still working on the Ann st bridge. All tracks (except trk 1) in dock yard are disconnected at CP 400 and CP 401.

[Jeff Smith]

Any idea where we're at yet on this project? I did find some interesting links in searching if they haven't been posted already:

https://walkbridgect.com/pdf/project_map.pdf

https://www.walkbridgect.com/pdf/dockya ... 112818.pdf

Construction Progress
• Overhead wires removed
• Replacement of tracks 2, 4 & 6
• Sub-ballast & ballast excavation & replacement
• Tree-trimming & clearing
• New catenary foundations (East & West)
• Science Road railroad crossing replacement

Upcoming Construction Activities
• New catenary structures
• Additional ballast installation
• Railroad drainage installation

https://walkbridgect.com/projects/danbury.aspx

Danbury Branch Dockyard Project
State Project No. 0301-0180
Fact Sheet

The Danbury Branch Dockyard Project consists of rail improvements, including approximately one-mile of electrification, along the Danbury Branch Line between Washington Street and the railroad crossing at Jennings Place. The work includes the addition of two new tracks between Marshall Street and Science Road, track replacement, signal and communication system upgrades, and new catenary structures.

The Dockyard is located under the I-95 overpass near Oyster Shell Park, and will include five total tracks that can be used for staging trains when they are not in use on the mainline. The additional tracks on the Danbury Branch will enable commuter trains ending their service in South Norwalk to switch direction back toward Grand Central Terminal.

As part of the Danbury Branch Dockyard Project, the superstructure of the rail bridge over Ann Street will be replaced. This includes new weathering steel deck spans and railings that will maintain the 19th century character of the bridge.


Key Milestones & Cost

START OF CONSTRUCTION: October 2017

ANTICIPATED CONSTRUCTION DURATION: 2.5 Years

COMPLETION OF ANN STREET BRIDGE: August 2019

ESTIMATED OVERALL PROJECT COST: $98 Million

ESTIMATED CONSTRUCTION COST: $89 Million

[Jeff Smith]

Subscribed to a WALK construction newsletter, got this:

Catenary Work on the Danbury Branch between Marshall Street and Jennings Place
Saturday, May 16 and Monday, May 18 - Saturday, May 23
Saturday, May 16 and Monday, May 18 - Friday, May 22 from 7:00 AM - 4:00 PM.
Thursday, May 21 - Saturday, May 23 from 7:00 PM - 7:00 AM.
No impacts to local roads, rail service or pedestrian traffic are anticipated.
Noise and construction lighting are anticipated.

[DutchRailnut]

so ?? catenary for one mile out of 24.3 so your post is ....

[Pensyfan19]

Will this catenary be extended to Danbury eventually?

[hcobin]

There has been discussion of extending the catenary to the Merritt 7 station in Norwalk so M8s could be used to run shuttles from the office park to South Norwalk.

[nomis]

so ?? catenary for one mile out of 24.3 so your post is ....

Appropriate and constructive to the thread at hand

[NH2060]

Will this catenary be extended to Danbury eventually?

Nope. Not a chance. And God be praised for that. It would be a tremendous waste of money. The quality and frequency of service on the branch has never been higher (pre-COVID obviously). When the line was electrified from 1925-1961 the levels of service were at best.. what, half of what it is now on weekdays? (Someone correct me if I'm wrong). Replace the fleet with new dual modes and coaches + enough extras for added service and that'll do far more for less $$$ than electrification would. Not that electrification of the branch and EMUs as a general rule is a bad idea on paper. In operation EMUs would be better suited to branch service *in theory* than dual modes and coaches esp. on grades, etc.


Unfortunately the upfront costs of just installing the cat poles and wires plus the necessary tree trimming/cutting down of trees along the ROW which wouldn't prevent another tree not on RR property from fouling up the wires in the event of a wind/thunder/snow/ice storm make electrification *in reality* a non-starter. It's bad enough when the New Canaan Branch is fouled up and that's only 8 miles long. The Danbury Branch is triple the length and therefore the risk of a foul-up is greater. Even if service was increased to 20 round trips and were all through trains into and out of GCT it would still be far more economically and logistically feasible to run dual modes and coaches.

There has been discussion of extending the catenary to the Merritt 7 station in Norwalk so M8s could be used to run shuttles from the office park to South Norwalk.

If they did do that extended some Stamford runs to Merrit 7 and moved the transfer point there to have the shuttles terminate/start their runs there instead of South Norwalk that would make for a truly seemless transfer between trains. But there won't be nor should be any electrification beyond where it is currently being re-installed to turn around main line trains.