Railway Track & Structures - May 2008 - (Page 35)

Conrail Reshaping Conrail in Northern New Jersey CSXT and NS worked with the State of New Jersey and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to reconfigure and upgrade Conrail operations. by Tom Judge, editor R ailroad operations have a long history in northern New Jersey, well over 150 years. Storied names in the railroad industry such as Lehigh Valley, Central Railroad of New Jersey, Reading and Pennsylvania all built lines into the area, all for different purposes in a different era. A renewed series of maintenance-of-way projects is melding those lines much more smoothly and increasing capacity to handle double-digit traffic increases since the acquisition of Conrail. Before Conrail was split and merged into CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern in the late 1990s, the New Jersey Department of Transportation and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey experienced an era of rail network rationalization by Conrail. With NS and CSXT bringing competition into the area through the creation of Conrail Shared Assets Areas, both railroads knew that more capacity would be required to handle the anticipated double-digit growth. The new owners of Conrail approached the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey about a possible series of public-private partnerships that eventually grew into a cohesive package of projects that would benefit all transportation-oriented stakeholders in the designated port area. It eventually totaled in excess of $70 million, with a near-equal split being accommodated among the two sectors. Six capacity creation projects To support projected growth in the northern New Jersey area and in conjunction with ongoing Port Authority of New York and New Jersey projects, six projects were initiated, with a focus on additional capacity and flexibility in Conrail’s North Jersey terminal areas. The first project, adjacent to the Port Authority’s marine facilities, was the upgrading and separation of Conrail’s main track operation from the Port Authority marine terminal facilities. This upgrade included rehabilitation of tracks, construction of interlockings and signalization of Conrail’s Chemical Coast Secondary adjacent to the port area. When completed, Conrail’s main track operation on the Chemical Coast will not be encumbered with the make up or break up of intermodal trains associated with the marine facilities and will provide increased capacity to support the large customer base that is dependent on this corridor. The second project, in conjunction with the Port Authority’s Corbin Street Support Yard, was the reconfiguration of PN Interlocking, allowing access to multiple 10,000-foot support With double-digit container growth, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is adding tracks and Conrail is reshaping itself to better support the port. Railway Track & Structures May 2008 35 www.rtands.com http://www.rtands.com

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Railway Track & Structures - May 2008 On Track Industry Today Supplier News AREMA News NRC News TTCI R&D NRC In Good Shape to Face Upcoming Challenges Pipe Ramming Can Aid Drainage Conrail Building to Handle Booming Northern New Jersey Traffic Products and Literature People Calendar Sales Representatives Advertisers Index Website Directory Professional Directory Classified Advertising Chicago Perspective

Railway Track & Structures - May 2008

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