202-554: The Hell Gate Bridge (originally the New York Connecting Railroad Bridge ) is a railroad bridge in New York City , New York, United States. The bridge carries two tracks of Amtrak 's Northeast Corridor and one freight track between Astoria, Queens , and Port Morris, Bronx , via Randalls and Wards Islands . Its main span is a 1,017-foot (310 m) steel through arch across Hell Gate ,
404-466: A United States Senate hearing in 1990 after attempting to contact Amtrak officials about the bridge; at the hearing, Amtrak officials testified that the bridge did not need repainting. The officials also estimated the cost of repainting at $ 43 million, though Moynihan disputed these estimates. By then, city officials had issued several warnings to pedestrians and drivers about the bridge's safety. The United States Congress allocated $ 55 million to renovate
606-543: A strait of the East River that separates Wards Island from Queens . The bridge also includes several approach viaducts and two spans across smaller waterways. Including approaches, the bridge is 17,000 feet (5,200 m) long. It is one of the few rail connections from Long Island , of which Queens is part, to the rest of the United States. The New York Connecting Railroad (NYCR) was formed in 1892 to build
808-729: A third rail power system devised by Frank J. Sprague . Electricity was in use on some branch lines of the NYNH&;H for interurban streetcars via third rail or trolley wire . An accident in the Park Avenue Tunnel near the present Grand Central Terminal that killed 17 people on January 8, 1902, was blamed on smoke from steam locomotives ; the resulting outcry led to a push for electric operation in Manhattan . The NH announced in 1905 that it would electrify its main line from New York to Stamford, Connecticut . Along with
1010-659: A "belt line" for freight (now the Fremont Secondary and Bay Ridge Branch ), of which the bridge was to be a part. Work on the belt line was about to begin by early 1902, and surveys for the proposed bridge's piers had been made by the end of the year. The PRR announced in February 1903 that it would build a double-tracked cantilever bridge, and it drew up a contract to order 30,500 short tons (27,200 long tons; 27,700 t) of steel from United States Steel . The bridge's 840-foot (260 m) central span would have been
1212-613: A $ 2 million contract to build the bridge's foundation, while John A. Gray received a contract to complete test borings for the bridge. Masonry contracts were awarded to Patrick Ryan (who partnered with U.S. Realty to build the Hell Gate spans' towers), as well as Arthur McMullin and T. A. Gillespie. Harold W. Hudson was the chief construction engineer. Work formally commenced on the Bronx and Queens approach viaducts in July 1912, and work on
1414-612: A bridge connecting Port Morris in the Bronx, Randalls Island, Wards Islands, and Astoria in Long Island. The 800-foot-long (240 m), 150-foot-high (46 m) bridge was to connect the New York Central Railroad and NH lines in the Bronx with the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and South Brooklyn Railway lines on Long Island. A state senator introduced a bill in February 1899 to incorporate
1616-631: A decade between Irish immigrants and Black people for work. Rioters burned the Colored Orphan Asylum to the ground. At least 120 people were killed. Eleven Black men were lynched over five days, and the riots forced hundreds of Blacks to flee. The Black population in Manhattan fell below 10,000 by 1865. The White working class had established dominance. It was one of the worst incidents of civil unrest in American history . In 1886,
1818-509: A franchise to construct a bridge from Long Island to the U.S. mainland, but to no avail. The NYCR planned for the bridge to carry a line from Manhattan to Brooklyn . In March 1898, U.S. representative John H. Ketcham proposed legislation to allow the NYCR to erect a bridge with two or more tracks across the Bronx Kill , Little Hell Gate , and Hell Gate waterways, connecting the Bronx (on
2020-594: A heavier type of trackbed . The PRR, NH, and LIRR were concurrently finalizing contracts for the construction of the NYCR line, which had commenced in mid-1910. The revised plans for the main span were not submitted to the Municipal Art Commission until early 1911, and a contract for the bridge's steel had still not been awarded. The PRR took title to the last remaining land lots in Queens in June 1911. By
2222-589: A layer of rock 20 feet (6.1 m) below the ground. The layer of rock on the Wards Island side is substantially deeper, descending more than 100 feet (30 m), and so the Wards Island tower sits atop a deep caisson foundation. At ground level, the towers have a cross section of 104 by 140 feet (32 by 43 m). Each tower has a "shoulder", upon which the lower chords rest, and the towers' dimensions shrink above this shoulder. The upper portions of each tower are hollow and contain staircases. Steel girders inside
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#17327661086242424-500: A live bomb under the Hell Gate Bridge. The bridge's economic value made it a target of Operation Pastorius , a Nazi sabotage plan, which was thwarted in 1942. The NYCR began leasing out land around the bridge's approach viaducts to nearby property owners in the 1940s. The property owners paid an annual fee and were obliged to maintain the land. Additionally, passengers had to pay a surcharge on tickets for train trips that used
2626-406: A lower chord, with a box-shaped cross section. The two chords are 140 feet (43 m) apart at either shore of Hell Gate, narrowing to 40 feet (12 m) apart at the middle of the river. Each lower chord ranges in thickness from approximately 7 to 11 feet (2.1 to 3.4 m), and the thickest sections of the lower chord are divided into two compartments. The upper chord is thinner and functions like
2828-486: A mixing plant, where the material was mixed into concrete. Elevators were used to transport concrete to the top of each pier. By July 1913, some of the piers and retaining walls for the Bronx and Queens viaducts had been constructed, and contractors had installed temporary plants on Randalls and Wards Islands. The next month, the PRR and NH announced that the NYCR would issue a $ 30 million mortgage and $ 11 million in bonds to fund
3030-616: A modified form of the spandrel-arch design. His assistant Othmar Ammann wrote that the arch design would allow the bridge to serve as a figurative portal to the Port of New York and New Jersey . In early 1905, the PRR sent engineers and workers to make borings for the bridge's foundation in Astoria. Work on the bridge's superstructure was delayed because the New York City Board of Aldermen would not approve several aspects of
3232-418: A new overhead catenary wire made of high-strength silver-bearing copper, specified by Amtrak and later patented by Phelps Dodge Specialty Copper Products of Elizabeth, New Jersey . Service with electric locomotives between New Haven and Boston began on January 31, 2000. The project took four years and cost close to $ 2.3 billion: $ 1.3 billion for the infrastructure improvements and close to $ 1 billion for both
3434-523: A part of the colony of New York . It became a center of slavery , with 42% of households enslaving Africans by 1730. Most were domestic slaves ; others were hired out as labor. Slavery became integrally tied to New York's economy through the labor of slaves throughout the port, and the banking and shipping industries trading with the American South . During construction in Foley Square in
3636-406: A part of the line that hugs the shore of Long Island Sound . Some of these crossings constitute the only points of access to waterfront communities and businesses otherwise disconnected from the road network. As such, eliminating them would require grade separation to maintain access. Six of the grade crossings have four-quadrant gates with induction loop sensors, which allow vehicles stopped on
3838-519: A reputation as a despotic leader. He instituted regulations on liquor sales, attempted to assert control over the Dutch Reformed Church , and blocked other religious groups from establishing houses of worship. In 1664, unable to summon any significant resistance, Stuyvesant surrendered New Amsterdam to English troops, led by Colonel Richard Nicolls , without bloodshed. The terms of the surrender permitted Dutch residents to remain in
4040-531: A result of Sandy, and the economic losses in New York City were estimated to be roughly $ 19 billion. The disaster spawned long-term efforts towards infrastructural projects to counter climate change and rising seas, with $ 15 billion in federal funding received through 2022 towards those resiliency efforts. In March 2020, the first case of COVID-19 in the city was confirmed. With its population density and its extensive exposure to global travelers,
4242-485: A speech denying the request, which was paraphrased on the front page of the New York Daily News as "FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD." The Municipal Assistance Corporation was formed and granted oversight authority over the city's finances. While a resurgence in the financial industry greatly improved the city's economic health in the 1980s, New York's crime rate continued to increase through that decade and into
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#17327661086244444-441: A stiffening truss; it is shaped like a hump, both for structural reinforcement and for esthetic purposes. It reaches a maximum height of 300 feet (91 m) or 305 feet (93 m) above mean high water. Beams run vertically and diagonally between the upper and lower chords. There is also transverse bracing between the upper chords and lower chords on either side of the bridge. Eight stringers, or girders , run parallel to and under
4646-534: A stretch of the NEC, began on March 30, 1918. Local electric service to Wilmington, Delaware , on the NEC began on September 30, 1928, and to Trenton, New Jersey , on June 29, 1930. Electrified service between Exchange Place , the Jersey City terminal, and New Brunswick, New Jersey , began on December 8, 1932, including the extension of Penn Station electric service from Manhattan Transfer. On January 16, 1933,
4848-540: A viaduct across Wards Island, placing the railroad in possible conflict with the New York State Hospital Commission , which had leased the island from the city, although the hospital commission ultimately did allow engineers to survey the island. The Municipal Art Commission rejected the original bridge plans in July 1907 as "not artistic". During the late 1900s, the NH and PRR acquired land for
5050-483: Is a global center of finance and commerce , culture , technology , entertainment and media , academics and scientific output , the arts and fashion , and, as home to the headquarters of the United Nations , international diplomacy . With an estimated population in 2023 of 8,258,035 distributed over 300.46 square miles (778.2 km ), the city is the most densely populated major city in
5252-467: Is an established safe haven for global investors. As of 2023 , New York City is the most expensive city in the world for expatriates and has by a wide margin the highest U.S. city residential rents; and Fifth Avenue is the most expensive shopping street in the world. New York City is home by a significant margin to the highest number of billionaires , individuals of ultra-high net worth (greater than US$ 30 million), and millionaires of any city in
5454-402: Is carried on plate-girder spans along the east side of Wards and Randalls Islands. A four-span inverted bowstring truss bridge , measuring 1,154 feet (352 m), carries the railroad tracks across Little Hell Gate, a former stream between Randalls and Wards Islands. Further north is a 350-foot (110 m), two-span truss bridge across Bronx Kill , a small strait separating Randalls Island from
5656-552: Is the most populous city in the United States , located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors . The city comprises five boroughs , each coextensive with a respective county . The city is the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area , the largest metropolitan area in the U.S. by both population and urban area . New York
5858-716: Is used by many Amtrak trains, including the high-speed Acela (formerly Acela Express ), intercity trains, and several long-distance trains. Most of the corridor also has frequent commuter rail service, operated by the MBTA , CT Rail , Metro-North Railroad , Long Island Rail Road , New Jersey Transit , SEPTA , and MARC . While large through freights have not run on the NEC since the early 1980s, some sections still carry smaller local freights operated by CSX , Norfolk Southern , CSAO , Providence and Worcester , New York and Atlantic , and Canadian Pacific . CSX and NS partly own their routes. Long-distance Amtrak services that use
6060-866: The Atlantic port to the agricultural markets and commodities of the North American interior via the Hudson River and the Great Lakes . Local politics became dominated by Tammany Hall , a political machine supported by Irish and German immigrants . In 1831, New York University was founded. Several prominent American literary figures lived in New York during the 1830s and 1840s, including William Cullen Bryant , Washington Irving , Herman Melville , Rufus Wilmot Griswold , John Keese , Nathaniel Parker Willis , and Edgar Allan Poe . Members of
6262-909: The Crown , with as many as 10,000 escaped slaves crowded into the city during the British occupation, the largest such community on the continent. When the British forces evacuated New York at the close of the war in 1783, they transported thousands of freedmen for resettlement in Nova Scotia , England, and the Caribbean . The attempt at a peaceful solution to the war took place at the Conference House on Staten Island between American delegates, including Benjamin Franklin , and British general Lord Howe on September 11, 1776. Shortly after
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6464-615: The Manhattan Psychiatric Center claimed that patients would be disturbed by loud noises, both during construction and after the bridge opened, but the city government claimed that the hospital's lease of the island had expired. The injunction was lifted in January 1913, when the State Supreme Court ruled that the law permitting the bridge's construction overrode the law that restricted railroads above
6666-857: The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority . The same month, the New York State Metropolitan Transportation Authority bought, and Connecticut leased, from Penn Central their sections of the New Haven Line , between Woodlawn , New York, and New Haven, Connecticut . In 1973, the Regional Rail Reorganization Act opened the way for Amtrak to buy sections of the NEC not already been sold to these commuter transportation authorities. These purchases by Amtrak were controversial at
6868-704: The Metro-North Railroad , which has hindered the establishment of high-speed service. In 1976, Congress authorized an overhaul of the system between Washington and Boston. Called the Northeast Corridor Improvement Project (NECIP), it included safety improvements, modernization of the signaling system by General Railway Signal , and new Centralized Electrification and Traffic Control (CETC) control centers by Chrysler at Philadelphia, New York and Boston. It allowed more trains to run faster and closer together, and set
7070-742: The New York City Fire Department and 71 law enforcement officers. The area was rebuilt with a new World Trade Center , the National September 11 Memorial and Museum , and other new buildings and infrastructure, including the World Trade Center Transportation Hub , the city's third-largest hub. The new One World Trade Center is the tallest skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere and the seventh-tallest building in
7272-1000: The Northwest Passage to the Orient for the Dutch East India Company . He sailed up what the Dutch called North River (now the Hudson River), named first by Hudson as the Mauritius after Maurice, Prince of Orange . Hudson claimed the region for the Dutch East India Company. In 1614, the area between Cape Cod and Delaware Bay was claimed by the Netherlands and called Nieuw-Nederland (' New Netherland '). The first non–Native American inhabitant of what became New York City
7474-727: The Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), which operated to New Jersey and other states, with the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad (New Haven; NH), which operated to New England. At the time, the NH had a freight terminal in Port Morris, Bronx , where car floats transported railroad cars down the East River to Manhattan or New Jersey. Although the PRR's North River Tunnels and East River Tunnels (completed in 1910) allowed passenger trains to travel between Long Island and New Jersey, no railroad line yet existed between Long Island and New England. Passengers traveling along
7676-472: The Port Richmond section of the city, while entering a 50 mph (80 km/h) speed limited (but at the time non- ATC protected) 4° curve at 106 mph (171 km/h), killing eight and injuring more than 200 (eight critically) of the 238 passengers and five crew on board as well as causing the suspension of all Philadelphia–New York NEC service for six days. This was the deadliest crash on
7878-576: The Statue of Liberty , a gift from France , was dedicated in New York Harbor. The statue welcomed 14 million immigrants as they came to the U.S. via Ellis Island by ship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and is a symbol of the United States and American ideals of liberty and peace. In 1898, the City of New York was formed with the consolidation of Brooklyn (until then a separate city),
8080-709: The Stonewall riots were a series of violent protests by members of the gay community against a police raid that took place in the early morning of June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village . They are widely considered to be the single most important event leading to the gay liberation movement and the modern fight for LGBT rights . Wayne R. Dynes , author of the Encyclopedia of Homosexuality , wrote that drag queens were
8282-758: The Turboservice were rerouted into Penn Station from Grand Central; the Turboservice moved on February 1, 1971, for cross-platform transfers to the Metroliners. In 1971, Amtrak began operations, and various state governments took control of portions of the NEC for their commuter transportation authorities. In January, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts bought the Attleboro/Stoughton Line in Massachusetts, later operated by
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8484-565: The U.S. Railway Association . By April 1976, Amtrak owned the entire NEC except Boston to the RI state line, which is owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and New Haven to New Rochelle, New York, which is owned by the States of Connecticut and New York. Amtrak still operates and maintains the portion in Massachusetts, but the line from New Haven to New Rochelle, New York , is operated by
8686-590: The UAC TurboTrain set a speed record for a production train: 170.8 miles per hour (274.9 km/h) between New Brunswick and Trenton, New Jersey . In February 1968, PRR merged with its rival New York Central Railroad to form the Penn Central (PC). Penn Central was required to absorb the New Haven in 1969 as a condition of the merger. On September 21, 1970, all New York–Boston trains except
8888-612: The United States Department of Transportation committed $ 450 million to a six-year project to support capacity increases on one of the busiest segments on the NEC: a 24-mile (39 km) section between New Brunswick and Trenton , passing through Princeton Junction. The Next Generation High-Speed project is designed to upgrade electrical power, signal systems and overhead catenary wires to improve reliability and increase speeds up to 160 mph (260 km/h), and, after
9090-507: The construction of Grand Central Terminal , which was opened in 1913, the NYC electrified its lines. On September 30, 1906, the NYC conducted a test of suburban multiple unit service to Highbridge station on the Hudson Line ; regular service began on December 11. Electric locomotives began serving Grand Central on February 15, 1907, and all NYC passenger service into Grand Central
9292-554: The steamship General Slocum caught fire in the East River , killing 1,021 people. In 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire , the city's worst industrial disaster, killed 146 garment workers and spurred the growth of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union and major improvements in factory safety standards. New York's non-White population was 36,620 in 1890. New York City
9494-465: The waterfronts since Dutch colonial times; reclamation is most prominent in Lower Manhattan, with developments such as Battery Park City in the 1970s and 1980s. Some of the natural relief in topography has been evened out, especially in Manhattan. Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor ( NEC ) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak , it runs from Boston in
9696-453: The 1930s, PRR equipped the New York–Washington line with Pulse code cab signaling . Between 1998 and 2003, this system was overlaid with an Alstom Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement System (ACSES) , using track-mounted transponders similar to the Balises of the modern European Train Control System . The ACSES will enable Amtrak to implement positive train control to comply with the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 . In December 1967,
9898-406: The 1980s. Electrification between New Haven and Boston was to be included in the 1976 Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act . The last grade crossings between New York and Washington were closed about 1985; eleven grade crossings remain in Connecticut. In the 1990s, Amtrak upgraded the NEC north of New Haven, CT to get it ready for the high-speed Acela Express trains. Dubbed
10100-435: The 1990s, by Amtrak, using a 60 Hz system. In 1905, the PRR began to electrify its suburban lines at Philadelphia: an effort that eventually led to 11 kV, 25 Hz AC catenary from New York and Washington. Electric service began in September 1915, with multiple unit trains west to Paoli on the PRR Main Line (now the Keystone Corridor ). Electric service to Chestnut Hill (now the Chestnut Hill West Line ), including
10302-416: The 1990s, the African Burying Ground was discovered; the cemetery included 10,000 to 20,000 graves of colonial-era Africans, some enslaved and some free. The 1735 trial and acquittal in Manhattan of John Peter Zenger , who had been accused of seditious libel after criticizing colonial governor William Cosby , helped to establish freedom of the press in North America . In 1754, Columbia University
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#173276610862410504-418: The 19th century, the city was transformed by both commercial and residential development relating to its status as a national and international trading center , as well as by European immigration, respectively. The city adopted the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 , which expanded the city street grid to encompass almost all of Manhattan. The 1825 completion of the Erie Canal through central New York connected
10706-415: The 2020s, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) began upgrading the Hell Gate Line to accommodate the Metro-North Railroad 's New Haven Line . The Hell Gate Bridge was originally known as the New York Connecting Railroad Bridge or as the East River Bridge Division. It consists of five spans, which connect the New York City boroughs of the Bronx to the north with Queens to the south. Three of
10908-407: The 225 mi (362 km) between New York City and Washington, D.C., in under three hours, and the 229 mi (369 km) between New York and Boston in under 3.5 hours. In 2012, Amtrak proposed improvements to enable "true" high-speed rail on the corridor, which would have roughly halved travel times at an estimated cost of $ 151 billion. Most of what is now called the Northeast Corridor
11110-401: The 541 on board. The NEC is a cooperative venture between Amtrak and various state agencies. Amtrak owns the track between Washington and New Rochelle , New York , a northern suburb of New York City. The segment from New Rochelle to New Haven is owned by the states of New York and Connecticut; Metro-North Railroad commuter trains operate there. Amtrak owns the tracks north of New Haven to
11312-409: The British occupation began, the Great Fire of New York destroyed nearly 500 buildings, about a quarter of the structures in the city, including Trinity Church . In January 1785, the assembly of the Congress of the Confederation made New York City the national capital. New York was the last capital of the U.S. under the Articles of Confederation and the first capital under the Constitution of
11514-410: The Bronx , and Staten Island . Anchored by Wall Street in the Financial District, Manhattan , New York City has been called both the world's premier financial and fintech center and the most economically powerful city in the world. As of 2022 , the New York metropolitan area is the largest metropolitan economy in the world , with a gross metropolitan product of over US$ 2.16 trillion. If
11716-420: The Bronx . There are also steel-and-concrete approach viaducts in the Bronx and Queens. In addition to the three existing tracks on the bridge, there was a fourth track used by freight trains until the 1970s. The passenger tracks have been electrified since c. 1918, and the freight tracks also had electrification from 1927 to 1969. The Hell Gate Bridge's design inspired that of the Sydney Harbour Bridge , and
11918-421: The Commissioner of Plant and Structures, estimated that the Hell Gate Bridge only had enough space for five lanes of roadway, so a new bridge would have to be constructed parallel to it. Accordingly, the Triborough Bridge was proposed as an entirely new bridge in March 1927, and that span would open in 1936. Meanwhile, the Port of New York Authority , which sought to increase the number of freight trains that used
12120-399: The County of New York (which then included parts of the Bronx), the County of Richmond, and the western portion of the County of Queens. The opening of the New York City Subway in 1904, first built as separate private systems, helped bind the new city together. Throughout the first half of the 20th century, the city became a world center for industry, commerce, and communication. In 1904,
12322-459: The Dutch West India Company relinquished its monopoly over the fur trade, leading to growth in the production and trade of food, timber, tobacco, and slaves (particularly with the Dutch West Indies ). In 1647, Peter Stuyvesant began his tenure as the last Director-General of New Netherland. During his tenure, the population of New Netherland grew from 2,000 to 8,000. Stuyvesant has been credited with improving law and order; however, he earned
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#173276610862412524-413: The Dutch colonial Director-General Peter Minuit , as charged by the Dutch West India Company , purchased the island of Manhattan from the Canarsie , a small Lenape band, for "the value of 60 guilders " (about $ 900 in 2018). A frequently told but disproved legend claims that Manhattan was purchased for $ 24 worth of glass beads. Following the purchase, New Amsterdam grew slowly. To attract settlers,
12726-478: The Dutch instituted the patroon system in 1628, whereby wealthy Dutchmen ( patroons , or patrons) who brought 50 colonists to New Netherland would be awarded land, local political autonomy, and rights to participate in the lucrative fur trade. This program had little success. Since 1621, the Dutch West India Company had operated as a monopoly in New Netherland, on authority granted by the Dutch States General . In 1639–1640, in an effort to bolster economic growth,
12928-427: The East River and North River tunnels. Freight traffic would still be required to use car floats, as trains would not be able to fit into the tunnels; the car-float operation would be shifted south to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn , where trains would be floated across the New York Bay to Greenville, Jersey City . By October 1900, grading of land for the bridge and its approach viaducts had commenced, and public hearings about
13130-415: The Hell Gate Bridge's main span could be retrofitted with an upper deck for vehicular and pedestrian use, a proposal that he repeated in 1924. Civic organizations across the city supported the extra deck, and the engineering firm of Robinson and Steinman conducted a study, finding that it was feasible to add the deck. In late 1926, mayor Jimmy Walker appointed a committee to consider the plan. Albert Goldman,
13332-439: The Hell Gate Bridge, hosted hearings in late 1924 to determine whether New York Central freight trains should be allowed to use the bridge, The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce and Long Island shippers endorsed the proposal, while the LIRR, NH, and PRR opposed it. The Port Authority ordered the PRR and NH to allow New York Central trains on the bridge in February 1925. The order was modified to exclude freight to and from New England, but
13534-592: The Hell Gate and Bronx Kill legs of the Robert F. Kennedy (formerly Triborough) Bridge to the west. The span across Hell Gate is oriented roughly from northwest to southeast, while the other two spans are oriented from northeast to southwest. The bridge was built with provisions for an upper level if the need arose. The entire bridge required 90,000 short tons (80,000 long tons; 82,000 t) of steel and 460,000 cubic yards (350,000 m; 12,000,000 cu ft) of concrete. The decks of each span are all made of concrete panels, which carry track beds with ballast ; this
13736-434: The Hudson River from Manhattan Island. The latter extended to the Bronx, where it continued into Manhattan via trackage rights on the New York and Harlem Railroad . It also reached the Bronx via the Harlem River and Port Chester Railroad , which extended to the Bronx from the New Haven at New Rochelle . From 1903 to 1917, the two railroads undertook a number of projects that connected their lines and completed, in effect,
13938-487: The ICC ultimately rejected a Long Island–New England passenger train as impractical, inconvenient, and of little benefit. In 1934, the NH put up its share of the bridge as collateral for a $ 6 million loan from the Reconstruction Finance Corporation . The NH was allowed to take back its portion of the bridge even if the RFC foreclosed on the loan; the NH declared bankruptcy the next year, remaining under trusteeship until 1947. During World War II, in 1940, officials disarmed
14140-455: The Little Hell Gate span's piers were built in open cofferdams due to the shallowness of that strait. The contractor built a dock on Wards Island to load and unload material. Derricks carried solid materials from the dock to a conveyor belts, which in turn led to covered storage bins, while cement was poured down a chute to a cement house next to the storage bins. Sand, stone, and cement from the bins were dumped into "charging cars" and carried to
14342-501: The NH. Penn Central itself filed for bankruptcy in 1970 and was absorbed by Conrail in 1976. During the 1960s and early 1970s, there were suggestions to transfer ownership of the bridge to the New York City Transit Authority and to run commuter rail across the bridge. In addition, there had been concerns about the bridge's upkeep as early as 1967, when debris from the bridge fell to the ground near Astoria Park . The freight tracks were de-electrified in 1969. The New Jersey car float
14544-602: The NYCR asked the Rapid Transit Commission to renew its application for a franchise, citing delays from the Board of Aldermen. The negotiations over the franchise sometimes turned contentious, but the PRR ultimately was promised a franchise from the city in December 1906. By then, the bridge was planned to fit four tracks, though only two would be used initially. The original two-track plan had been changed after
14746-563: The NYCR to build a bridge from the Port Morris station in the Bronx to the Bushwick Junction station in Queens, and New York governor Theodore Roosevelt signed the bill the next month. Alfred P. Boller drew up plans for a cantilever bridge . The cantilever span was to measure 1,448 feet (441 m) long, 30 feet (9.1 m) wide, and 136 feet (41 m) high; the project, including 7 miles (11 km) of approach tracks,
14948-538: The NYCR's co-owners and caused the bridge to fall into disrepair. The NH had declared bankruptcy in 1961 but continued to own a 50% stake in the bridge. A feasibility study on the possible liquidation of the NH found that the bridge's salvage value was equal to the theoretical cost of demolition. The PRR's own issues compelled it to merge with New York Central in 1968, forming the Penn Central Transportation Company , which also included
15150-597: The Native Americans and epidemics brought on by contact with the Europeans caused sizeable population losses for the Lenape between 1660 and 1670. By 1700, the Lenape population had diminished to 200. New York experienced several yellow fever epidemics in the 18th century, losing ten percent of its population in 1702 alone. In the early 18th century, New York grew in importance as a trading port while as
15352-480: The New York metropolitan area were its own country , it would have the tenth-largest economy in the world . Despite having a 24/7 rapid transit system , New York also leads the world in urban automobile traffic congestion . The city is home to the world's two largest stock exchanges by market capitalization of their listed companies: the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq . New York City
15554-477: The Northeast Corridor are indicated using the following abbreviations. Other services are listed in the right-most column. Note that not all trains necessarily stop at all indicated stations. [REDACTED] DC Streetcar : H Street/Benning Road Line The entire Northeast Corridor has 11 grade crossings , all in southeastern New London County, Connecticut . The remaining grade crossings are along
15756-459: The Northeast Corridor include the Cardinal , Crescent , and Silver Meteor trains, which reach 125 mph (201 km/h), as well as its Acela trains, which reach 150 mph (240 km/h) in parts of Massachusetts , Rhode Island , and New Jersey . Some express trains operated by MARC that reach 125 mph (201 km/h) also operate on the Northeast Corridor. Acela can travel
15958-468: The Northeast Corridor since 16 died when Amtrak's Washington–Boston Colonial (TR#94) rear-ended three stationary Conrail locomotives at Gunpow Interlocking near Baltimore on January 4, 1987. Frankford Junction curve was the site of a previous fatal accident on September 6, 1943, when an extra section of the PRR's Washington to New York Congressional Limited derailed there, killing 79 and injuring 117 of
16160-548: The Northeast Corridor titled NEC FUTURE, and released the final environmental impact statement in December 2016. Multiple potential alignments north of New York City were studied. The proposed upgrades have not been funded. Eleven minutes after leaving 30th Street Station in Philadelphia on May 12, 2015, a year-old ACS-64 locomotive (#601) and all seven Amfleet I coaches of Amtrak's northbound Northeast Regional (TR#188) derailed at 9:21pm at Frankford Junction in
16362-401: The Northeast Corridor up to five hours. Railroad officials blamed Amtrak's funding woes for the deterioration of the track and power supply system, which in places is almost a hundred years old. These problems have decreased in recent years after tracks and power systems were repaired and improved. In September 2013, one of two feeder lines supplying power to the New Haven Line failed, while
16564-844: The Northeast Corridor. These included the New York Tunnel Extension , which extended from New Jersey to Long Island (and was composed of the Manhattan Transfer station , the North River Tunnels , a new Pennsylvania Station , the East River Tunnels ), the New York Connecting Railroad , and the Hell Gate Bridge . Combined, these constituted a stretch that started just outside of Newark, New Jersey , on
16766-505: The Northeast High Speed Rail Improvement Program (NHRIP), the effort eliminated grade crossings , rebuilt bridges and modified curves. Concrete railroad ties replaced wood ties, and heavier continuous welded rail (CWR) was laid-down. In 1996, Amtrak began installing electrification gear along the 157 miles (253 kilometres) of track between New Haven and Boston. The infrastructure included
16968-546: The PRR and NH still refused to allow the New York Central to use the bridge after thirty days. A spur route from the bridge, which would have allowed trains from the Bronx to travel to a new terminal in Long Island City , was proposed the same year. PRR officials opposed the plan because it would strain the capacity of the bridge's two western tracks, and ultimately the spur was canceled. By the end of 1925,
17170-478: The PRR rent, so work could commence as soon as possible. That June, the Rapid Transit Commission granted a perpetual franchise for the bridge and belt line to the NYCR. The connecting railroad was to pay the New York City government a fee to cross the East River. The PRR hired New York City bridge commissioner Gustav Lindenthal as its consulting structural engineer in 1904. To avoid hospitals on Wards Island,
17372-419: The PRR was still acquiring land in Queens for both the passenger and freight lines. The PRR agreed to buy the last piece of land for the Queens approach that July, at which point the cost of the bridge had increased to $ 25 million. The NYCR's engineers prepared new plans for the main span's piers the same year. That December, the PRR and NH agreed to share the cost of the bridge's construction. The Hell Gate Bridge
17574-497: The PRR; trains of both railroads were powered by DC electricity from a third rail. PRR trains changed engines (electric to/from steam) at Manhattan Transfer ; passengers could also transfer there to H&M trains to downtown Manhattan. On July 29, 1911, NH began electric service on its Harlem River Branch : a suburban branch that would become a main line with the completion of the New York Connecting Railroad and its Hell Gate Bridge . The bridge opened on March 9, 1917, but
17776-616: The Pennsylvania Railroad side, and connected with the Harlem River and Port Chester Railroad (and thus New Rochelle) on the New Haven side. With the opening of the Hell Gate Bridge in 1917, this final connecting stretch, and thus the Northeast Corridor itself, was complete. With the 1968 creation of Penn Central , which was a combination of those two railroads and the New York Central Railroad,
17978-661: The Randalls and Wards Islands viaducts is the Little Hell Gate Bridge, an inverted bowstring truss bridge. The inverted bowstring truss span is 1,154 feet (352 m) long, as measured from the centers of the abutments on either side. The Little Hell Gate Bridge consists of four sections of nearly equal length, although two are slightly longer than the others. Each section is composed of linked eyebars measuring 16 inches (410 mm) wide. New York City New York , often called New York City or NYC ,
18180-716: The Revolutionary War and escaped slaves, a significant free-Black population gradually developed in Manhattan. The New York Manumission Society worked for abolition and established the African Free School to educate Black children. It was not until 1827 that slavery was completely abolished in the state . Free Blacks struggled with discrimination and interracial abolitionist activism continued. New York City's population jumped from 123,706 in 1820 (10,886 of whom were Black and of which 518 were enslaved) to 312,710 by 1840 (16,358 of whom were Black). Also in
18382-476: The U.S. Department of Transportation to facilitate mutual cooperation and planning and to advise Congress on Corridor rail and development policy. The commission members include USDOT, Amtrak and the Northeast Corridor states. In October 2010, Amtrak released "A Vision for High-Speed Rail on the Northeast Corridor," an aspirational proposal for dedicated high-speed rail tracks between Washington, D.C., and Boston. Many of these proposals are unfunded. In August 2011
18584-426: The U.S. mainland) with Randalls Island, Wards Island , and Long Island. Although the federal government of the United States required that the clearance below any bridge across the East River (of which the Hell Gate was part) be 150 feet (46 m) above mean high water , the bill permitted a bridge as low as 140 feet (43 m) above mean high water. By the beginning of 1899, the NYCR had received estimates for
18786-465: The United States . As the U.S. capital, New York City hosted the inauguration of the first President, George Washington , and the first Congress , at Federal Hall on Wall Street . Congress drafted the Bill of Rights there. The Supreme Court held its first organizational sessions in New York in 1790. In 1790, for the first time, New York City surpassed Philadelphia as the nation's largest city. At
18988-436: The United States . As many as 800 languages are spoken in New York City, making it the most linguistically diverse city in the world. In 2021, the city was home to nearly 3.1 million residents born outside the U.S., the largest foreign-born population of any city in the world. New York City traces its origins to Fort Amsterdam and a trading post founded on Manhattan Island by Dutch colonists around 1624. The settlement
19190-416: The United States. New York City has more than double the population of Los Angeles , the nation's second-most populous city. With more than 20.1 million people in its metropolitan statistical area and 23.5 million in its combined statistical area as of 2020, New York City is one of the world's most populous megacities . The city and its metropolitan area are the premier gateway for legal immigration to
19392-538: The Wards Island Bridge Company to construct the bridge. The following month, the NYCR's directors held a meeting with New York Central's directors about the construction of the line. The New York Central expressed interest in the planned Hell Gate Bridge, as the railroad intended to use it for both passenger and freight traffic. The New York State Legislature passed a bill in April 1900, authorizing
19594-588: The Wards Island viaduct, trains cross the former Little Hell Gate strait to reach the Randalls Island viaduct. The viaduct across Randalls Island is about 1,965 feet (599 m) long and measures about 75 to 80 feet (23 to 24 m) high. It is supported by concrete arches similar to those on Wards Island. The arches support 24 plate-girder sections that measure between 80 and 87 feet (24 and 27 m) long. The viaduct ramps down as it continues north from Wards Island to Randalls Island. The original plans for
19796-435: The arched span; Lindenthal claimed that they were among the largest rivets ever used. Due to cold weather, the upper chord of the arch could not be riveted together until May 1916. Locomotive cranes constructed the remaining portions of the viaducts. By mid-October 1916, the PRR and NH anticipated that passenger service would commence at the beginning of 1917. Finishing touches were placed on the bridge during late 1916. In total,
19998-470: The architects found that the cost of converting a two-track bridge to four tracks would be much higher than the upfront cost of a four-track bridge. The New York City Board of Estimate approved the NYCR's franchise in February 1907. Rea submitted plans for the arch bridge in May 1907 to the city's Municipal Art Commission . The arch would have a clear span of 1,000 feet (300 m), the longest of its kind in
20200-668: The area for France and named it Nouvelle Angoulême (New Angoulême ). A Spanish expedition, led by the Portuguese captain Estêvão Gomes sailing for Emperor Charles V , arrived in New York Harbor in January 1525 and charted the mouth of the Hudson River , which he named Río de San Antonio ('Saint Anthony's River'). In 1609, the English explorer Henry Hudson rediscovered New York Harbor while searching for
20402-548: The beginning of the 1990s. By the mid-1990s, crime rates started to drop dramatically due to revised police strategies, improving economic opportunities, gentrification , and new residents, both American transplants and new immigrants from Asia and Latin America. New York City's population exceeded 8 million for the first time in the 2000 United States census ; further records were set in 2010 , and 2020 U.S. censuses. Important new sectors, such as Silicon Alley , emerged in
20604-515: The border between Rhode Island and Massachusetts. The final segment from the border north to Boston is owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. At just over 453 miles (729 km), the Northeast Corridor is the longest electrified rail corridor in the United States. Most electrified railways in the country are for rapid transit or commuter rail use; the Keystone Corridor is the only other electrified intercity mainline. Currently,
20806-423: The bridge cost $ 18.5 million. Before the bridge's official opening, police forces patrolled it to prevent sabotage during World War I. The first train ran across the bridge at a dedication ceremony on March 9, 1917, on a track constructed for the occasion. The Hell Gate Bridge was not complete; workers were still laying tracks, and the line was not electrified. Intercity passenger trains began running on April 1 with
21008-474: The bridge during emergencies or when other routes were congested. By 1932, residents of Long Island were advocating for the construction of a second rail link between their island and the Bronx, due to the lack of direct freight service to eastern Long Island via the Hell Gate Bridge. The same year, the ICC hosted hearings over whether to run passenger trains over the bridge between eastern Long Island and New England;
21210-430: The bridge has received commentary both for its design and its impact on Long Island's commerce. At the end of the 19th century, there was no direct rail connection between New England and New Jersey , nor between Long Island and the rest of the continental United States . Trains traveling between any of these locations had to use barges, which traversed New York City's congested waterways. This spurred efforts to link
21412-602: The bridge in late 1991, which included $ 42 million for repainting and $ 13 million for structural improvements. In exchange, the New York State Department of Transportation had to provide matching funds for 20 percent of the federal allocation. At the time, 20 Amtrak trains used the bridge every day. Workers began renovating the bridge in April 1992; at Moynihan's request, the Municipal Art Society asked six architects and artists to decide
21614-418: The bridge itself, and the passenger services that used it, by 1975, while Conrail began operating additional freight trains over it during the same decade. Vandals frequently threw rocks from the bridge and set fires, which had prompted Penn Central, and later Amtrak, to increase security on the bridge. By the late 1970s, debris was falling from the approach viaducts. Due to poor drainage, water had seeped through
21816-493: The bridge only carried rail traffic when it opened, it could also be adapted for pedestrian and car traffic. By the end of 1917, all four tracks were complete, and freight trains began running across the bridge in January 1918. At the time, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle wrote that the bridge would be able to accommodate 240 freight cars daily. The passenger tracks were also electrified by 1918. During World War I, when
22018-598: The bridge was carrying 1,200 freight cars per day. In early 1926, the Port Authority asked the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) to allow all freight trains on the bridge. The PRR and NH again opposed the move, and the PRR argued that allowing other railroads' trains on the bridge would discourage railroads from improving routes used by competitors. ICC examiners recommended opening the bridge only to freight trains toward Long Island; at
22220-537: The bridge was still carrying very limited passenger service because of wartime restrictions that diverted train traffic. The New York Central stopped using the bridge in November 1920 after the PRR and NH raised the bridge's freight-transport fees, and the New York Central began using car floats to Long Island instead. When the Triborough (now RFK) Bridge nearby was first proposed in 1920, Lindenthal suggested that
22422-465: The bridge were being hosted. Initially, the PRR did not intend to use the bridge, and the crossing was to connect with the trackage of the LIRR. After the PRR's acquisition of the LIRR in 1900, the PRR began contemplating taking control of the Hell Gate Bridge. Ultimately, in 1901, the PRR and NH bought the NYCR. This was part of a larger plan to improve rail infrastructure in the New York City area, including
22624-417: The bridge's right-of-way . The first house in the bridge's right-of-way was relocated at the beginning of 1908. The Pennsylvania Railroad announced in December 1908 that, as soon as Pennsylvania Station in Manhattan was completed, the railroad would begin constructing the bridge. The bridge was to cost up to $ 20 million. By early 1909, the NH had acquired all of the necessary land for the Bronx approach, while
22826-491: The bridge's approach viaducts due to both vandalism and general neglect, and Vallone said in 2001 that the paint had started to peel off. Security on the bridge was increased following the September 11 attacks . In 2002, state government officials announced plans to spend $ 11.8 million to replace the bridge's freight track so it could support heavier trains. After Peter Vallone Jr. was elected to his father's city council seat,
23028-565: The bridge's two passenger tracks to 80 trains a day, and because most NH trains were planned to continue running to Grand Central. In mid-1917, NYCR applied for permission to issue $ 1.5 million in bonds to finish the bridge. The bridge started carrying other routes in late 1917, such as the PRR's Colonial Express , the Washington-Bar Harbor Express , and a short-lived St. Louis–Pittsburgh–Boston route. Commuter services continued to run to Grand Central Terminal. Though
23230-430: The bridge, linking New York and the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) with New England and the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad (NH). A cantilever bridge across Hell Gate was proposed in 1900, but the plan was changed to a through-arch bridge after repeated delays. Construction was overseen by the engineers Gustav Lindenthal , Othmar Ammann , and David B. Steinman and architect Henry Hornbostel . The bridge
23432-438: The bridge, unless they were traveling to or from New York City; the surcharge had resulted an estimated $ 20.9 million in revenue for the bridge from 1920 to 1950. The surcharge prompted investigations from the ICC in the mid-1940s and again in 1951, but the surcharge was upheld both times. Train traffic in the U.S. started to decrease in the mid-20th century as a result of increased automobile usage. This adversely affected both of
23634-587: The business elite lobbied for the establishment of Central Park , which in 1857 became the first landscaped park in an American city. The Great Irish Famine brought a large influx of Irish immigrants, of whom more than 200,000 were living in New York by 1860, representing over a quarter of the city's population. Extensive immigration from the German provinces meant that Germans comprised another 25% of New York's population by 1860. Democratic Party candidates were consistently elected to local office, increasing
23836-409: The center of the main span, the deck reaches its maximum height, 145 feet (44 m) above mean high water, with a clearance below of 135 feet (41 m). The main span was intended to carry a total load of approximately 76,000 pounds per lineal foot, or 113,000 kilograms per lineal meter. The span uses high- carbon steel because it was cheaper than nickel steel at the time of construction. In total,
24038-561: The city from New Jersey. The East River—a tidal strait —flows from Long Island Sound and separates the Bronx and Manhattan from Long Island. The Harlem River , another tidal strait between the East and Hudson rivers, separates most of Manhattan from the Bronx. The Bronx River , which flows through the Bronx and Westchester County , is the only entirely freshwater river in the city. The city's land has been altered substantially by human intervention, with considerable land reclamation along
24240-439: The city rapidly replaced Wuhan , China as the global epicenter of the pandemic during the early phase, straining the city's healthcare infrastructure. Through March 2023, New York City recorded more than 80,000 deaths from COVID-19-related complications. New York City is situated in the northeastern United States , in southeastern New York State, approximately halfway between Washington, D.C. and Boston . Its location at
24442-576: The city's economy. The advent of Y2K was celebrated with fanfare in Times Square . New York City suffered the bulk of the economic damage and largest loss of human life in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks . Two of the four airliners hijacked that day were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, resulting in the collapse of both buildings and the deaths of 2,753 people, including 343 first responders from
24644-794: The city's ties to the South and its dominant party. In 1861, Mayor Fernando Wood called on the aldermen to declare independence from Albany and the United States after the South seceded, but his proposal was not acted on. Anger at new military conscription laws during the American Civil War (1861–1865), which spared wealthier men who could afford to hire a substitute, led to the Draft Riots of 1863 , whose most visible participants were ethnic Irish working class. The draft riots deteriorated into attacks on New York's elite, followed by attacks on Black New Yorkers after fierce competition for
24846-633: The colony and allowed for religious freedom. In 1667, during negotiations leading to the Treaty of Breda after the Second Anglo-Dutch War , the victorious Dutch decided to keep the nascent plantation colony of what is now Suriname , which they had gained from the English, and in return the English kept New Amsterdam. The settlement was promptly renamed "New York" after the Duke of York (the future King James II and VII). The duke gave part of
25048-622: The colony to proprietors George Carteret and John Berkeley . On August 24, 1673, during the Third Anglo-Dutch War , Anthony Colve of the Dutch navy seized New York at the behest of Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest and rechristened it "New Orange" after William III , the Prince of Orange . The Dutch soon returned the island to England under the Treaty of Westminster of November 1674. Several intertribal wars among
25250-412: The color in which the bridge should be painted. The bridge was repainted a deep red hue known as Hell Gate Red. The paint consisted of two layers of epoxy coating , a urethane layer, and a clear layer to protect against ultraviolet rays and corrosion. Due to a flaw in the paint, the red color began to fade before the work was completed. The repainting was completed in 1996, and graffiti began to appear on
25452-449: The construction of the tallest buildings in New York City at the time. The caisson-sinking process was further complicated by the discovery of a diagonal fissure in the underlying rock. It ultimately took seven months to sink the caissons and ensure that the tower would not be susceptible to settlement . In November 1912, a New York Supreme Court justice enjoined the contractors from erecting abutments on Wards Island. The operators of
25654-400: The construction of the Hell Gate Bridge and associated lines; the railroads had spent $ 8.6 million to date on the bridge. The bonds were issued later that year. During a site visit in mid-1914, a local civic group noted that a temporary span had been finished across Bronx Kill and that piers were being built within the riverbed of Little Hell Gate. The main span's towers had reached the height of
25856-515: The corridor uses three catenary systems. From Washington, D.C., to Sunnyside Yard (just east of New York Penn Station), Amtrak's 25 Hz traction power system (originally built by the Pennsylvania Railroad) supplies 12 kV at 25 Hz. From Sunnyside to Mill River (just east of New Haven station), the former New Haven Railroad's system , since modified by Metro-North, supplies 12.5 kV at 60 Hz. From Mill River to Boston,
26058-521: The deck by the end of 1914, while almost all of the other piers had been completed by then. Steel girders and plates for the Little Hell Gate and Bronx Kill spans were being installed by late 1914. The girders under the two center tracks were installed first. Afterward, the center tracks were laid, and a derrick car and a locomotive crane were placed on opposite spans. The derrick car delivered girders that had already been riveted together, and
26260-417: The development of large housing tracts in eastern Queens and Nassau County , with Wall Street leading America's place as the world's dominant economic power. The United Nations headquarters was completed in 1952, solidifying New York's global geopolitical influence, and the rise of abstract expressionism in the city precipitated New York's displacement of Paris as the center of the art world. In 1969,
26462-562: The electrification south of Wilmington was stalled by the Great Depression , but the PRR got a loan from the Public Works Administration to resume work. The tunnels at Baltimore were rebuilt as part of the project. Electric service between New York and Washington began on February 10, 1935. On April 7, the electrification of passenger trains was complete, with 639 daily trains: 191 hauled by locomotives and
26664-406: The end of 1790, the national capital was moved to Philadelphia . During the 19th century, New York City's population grew from 60,000 to 3.43 million. Under New York State's gradual emancipation act of 1799, children of slave mothers were to be eventually liberated but to be held in indentured servitude until their mid-to-late twenties. Together with slaves freed by their masters after
26866-564: The end of the year, the designs for the Bronx Kill and Little Hell Gate spans were still being revised, and land condemnation for the bridge was nearly finished. Lindenthal estimated in late 1911 that the bridge would cost $ 18 million and be completed in 1914. The Municipal Art Commission ultimately approved the revised plans. Excavations for the Astoria end of the main span, across Hell Gate, commenced in March 1911, and were nearly completed by
27068-586: The end of the year. The American Bridge Company received a contract for the steelwork on the Hell Gate span, Wards Island viaduct, and Queens approach viaduct, while the McClintic-Marshall Company was hired to manufacture steel for the other parts of the bridge. The Carnegie Steel Company was hired in early 1912 to roll the steel plates for the bridge. Later that year, Patrick Ryan, the Manhattan Bridge's main contractor, received
27270-420: The entire corridor was under the control of a single entity for the first time. After successor Penn Central’s 1970 bankruptcy, the corridor was almost entirely subsumed by the subsequently-created Amtrak on May 1, 1971. In 1899, William J. Wilgus , the New York Central Railroad (NYC)'s chief engineer, proposed electrifying the lines leading from Grand Central Terminal and the split at Mott Haven , using
27472-430: The fact that various parts of the spans had become discolored. That year, Amtrak increased rental fees for the land under the bridge from tens of dollars to as much as $ 40,000 a year. The railroad reversed the rent increases following outcry from local residents. The Greater Astoria Historical Society , in conjunction with Amtrak, celebrated the centennial of the bridge's opening in 2017. As part of Penn Station Access , in
27674-423: The federal government took control of railroad lines in the U.S., the New York Central began using the Hell Gate Bridge, allowing Long Island merchants to send products directly to the mainland via any railroad. The bridge was carrying only four passenger trains per day by September 1918, amid the war. The media wrote that, due to its low use, the bridge's construction cost was unlikely to be recouped. As late as 1919,
27876-415: The floor of the deck. Hornbostel was responsible for the towers on either shore of Hell Gate, which were designed to resemble castle keeps . They measure 220 feet (67 m) high and are made of concrete; the towers are clad with Maine granite above ground level. At the bases of each tower are two 500,000-pound (230,000 kg) cast-steel hinges, one for each of the lower chords. The Queens tower sits atop
28078-479: The foundations of the main span's towers began that September, though no above-ground work had commenced. By October 1912, workers were preparing to lower caissons for the main span's Wards Island tower, as the underlying layer of rock was over one hundred feet (30 m) deep and was covered by layers of sand, coarse gravel, and boulders. Twenty-one caissons were used to excavate the Wards Island tower's foundation. The caissons were larger and deeper than those used in
28280-457: The founding of a Dutch fur trading settlement on Governors Island . In 1625, construction was started on a citadel and Fort Amsterdam , later called Nieuw Amsterdam (New Amsterdam), on present-day Manhattan Island. The colony of New Amsterdam extended from the southern tip of Manhattan to modern-day Wall Street , where a 12-foot (3.7 m) wooden stockade was built in 1653 to protect against Native American and English raids. In 1626,
28482-455: The franchise, prompting an unsuccessful proposal to remove the aldermen's ability to grant franchises. Among other things, the aldermen wanted trains on the bridge to use electric power exclusively, provide space for vehicles and pedestrians, and the city to be allowed to add utility wires to the bridge. New York Governor Frank W. Higgins signed a bill in mid-1905, allowing the start of construction to be postponed by several months. That November,
28684-428: The grounds of a hospital. The construction of piers on Randalls and Wards Islands and in Queens began in February 1913. Derricks were used to construct the concrete piers under the Bronx Kill, Randalls Island, Little Hell Gate, and Wards Island spans. The foundations of the Bronx Kill span's piers were constructed using caissons, since the underlying layer of rock was nearly 100 feet (30 m) deep. The foundations of
28886-473: The ice (and its subsequent retreat) contributed to the separation of what is now Long Island and Staten Island. That action left bedrock at a relatively shallow depth, providing a solid foundation for most of Manhattan's skyscrapers. The Hudson River flows through the Hudson Valley into New York Bay . Between New York City and Troy, New York , the river is an estuary . The Hudson River separates
29088-554: The last American stronghold in Manhattan, causing George Washington and his forces to retreat across the Hudson River to New Jersey , pursued by British forces. After the battle, in which the Americans were defeated, the British made the city their military and political base of operations in North America. The city was a haven for Loyalist refugees and escaped slaves who joined the British lines for freedom promised by
29290-405: The locomotive crane installed the girders for the outer tracks. The arched main span above Hell Gate was technically challenging because Hell Gate was a navigable waterway, and the arch could not be constructed using falsework . Consequently, massive temporary backstays were built behind both of the Hell Gate towers to cantilever the two pieces of the arch. To accommodate the backstays, the tops of
29492-433: The main span required between 18,000 and 20,000 short tons (16,000 and 18,000 t) of rolled steel . The span is a two-hinged arch ; there are hinges at the springing points of the arch (at the bases of the towers on either side of Hell Gate). The arch's beams run along the north and south sides of a 60-foot-wide (18 m) deck. On either side of the deck is an upper chord, with an inverted U-shaped cross section, and
29694-465: The middle of Hell Gate. The main span consisted of 23 panels, which were installed by the derricks atop the backstays. The panels were composed of steel pieces that weighed as much as 185 short tons (165 long tons; 168 t). The steel pieces were manufactured off-site and, at the time, were among the heaviest steel pieces ever manufactured. Each piece was delivered to the site via car floats, then transported up via derricks. To counteract sagging caused by
29896-479: The modern-day Northeast Corridor had to take a ferry from New Jersey and walk across Manhattan to Grand Central Terminal , or vice versa, to continue their journey. The New York Connecting Railroad (NYCR), headed by Oliver W. Barnes, was incorporated in April 1892 to build the bridge. Throughout the 1890s, the New York State Legislature considered various bills that would give the NYCR
30098-419: The most populous urbanized area in the world in the early 1920s, overtaking London . The metropolitan area surpassed 10 million in the early 1930s, becoming the first megacity . The Great Depression saw the election of reformer Fiorello La Guardia as mayor and the fall of Tammany Hall after eighty years of political dominance. Returning World War II veterans created a post-war economic boom and
30300-556: The mouth of the Hudson River , which feeds into a naturally sheltered harbor and then into the Atlantic Ocean , has helped the city grow in significance as a trading port. Most of the city is built on the three islands of Long Island, Manhattan, and Staten Island. During the Wisconsin glaciation , 75,000 to 11,000 years ago, the New York City area was situated at the edge of a large ice sheet . The erosive forward movement of
30502-431: The much newer 60 Hz traction power system supplies 25 kV at 60 Hz. All of Amtrak's electric locomotives can switch between these systems . In addition to catenary, the East River Tunnels have 750 V DC third rail for Long Island Rail Road trains, and the North River Tunnels have third rail for emergency use only. In 2006, several high-profile electric-power failures delayed Amtrak and commuter trains on
30704-531: The new Acela Express trainsets and the Bombardier–Alstom HHP-8 locomotives. On December 11, 2000, Amtrak began operating its higher-speed Acela Express service. Fastest travel time by Acela is three and a half hours between Boston and New York, and two hours forty-five minutes between New York and Washington, D.C. In 2005, there was talk in Congress of splitting the Northeast Corridor, which
30906-473: The north to Washington, D.C. , in the south, with major stops in Providence , New Haven , Stamford , New York City , Newark , Trenton , Philadelphia , Wilmington , and Baltimore . The NEC is roughly paralleled by Interstate 95 for most of its length. Carrying more than 2,200 trains a day, it is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency. The corridor
31108-445: The only " transgender folks around" during the June 1969 Stonewall riots. The transgender community in New York City played a significant role in fighting for LGBT equality. In the 1970s, job losses due to industrial restructuring caused New York City to suffer from economic problems and rising crime rates. Growing fiscal deficits in 1975 led the city to appeal to the federal government for financial aid; President Gerald Ford gave
31310-532: The other 448 under multiple-unit power. New York–Washington electric freight service began on May 20, 1935, after the electrification of freight lines in New Jersey and Washington,DC. Extensions to Potomac Yard across the Potomac River from Washington, as well as several freight branches along the way, were electrified in 1937 and 1938. The Potomac Yard retained its electrification until 1981. In
31512-682: The other feeder was disabled for service. The lack of electrical power disrupted trains on Amtrak and Metro-North Railroad , which share the segment in New York State. There are 109 active stations on the Northeast Corridor; 30 are used by Amtrak. All but three ( Kingston , Westerly , and Mystic ) see commuter service. Amtrak owns Pennsylvania Station in New York, 30th Street Station in Philadelphia, Penn Station in Baltimore, and Union Station in Washington. The main services of
31714-425: The piers called for them to be made for steel lattices. The metal piers were changed to concrete both because the Municipal Art Commission disapproved of the steel-lattice design, and because there were concerns that the islands' prisoners and psychiatric patients could escape by climbing the trestles. In addition, when the plans for the piers were changed in 1914, metal had become more expensive than concrete. Between
31916-442: The previous half-century. Vallone asked the federal government to fix the bridge after falling debris broke a car's window in 1988. Vallone and U.S. senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan requested that Amtrak devise a plan for repairing the bridge, though Amtrak officials denied that there was deterioration. The New York Times described the bridge in 1991 as "a flaking and crumbling symbol of urban decay and decline". Moynihan convened
32118-527: The purchase of new equipment, up to 186 miles per hour (299 km/h). In September 2012, speed tests were conducted using Acela trainsets, achieving a speed of 165 miles per hour (266 km/h). The improvements were scheduled to be completed in 2016, but, due to delays, the project had not been completed until 2020. In 2012, the Federal Railroad Administration began developing a master plan for bringing high-speed rail to
32320-402: The repairs were finished, local residents continued to express concerns about the viaduct's structural integrity. Additionally, the bridge's paint was peeling off by the late 1980s. Sources disagree on whether the bridge had last been repainted in 1939 or whether it had never been repainted at all; in either case, Amtrak's own vice president said the bridge should have been repainted three times in
32522-535: The rerouting of the NH's Federal Express via the bridge. The Hell Gate span was the world's longest steel arch bridge until the Bayonne Bridge , between New York and New Jersey, was completed in 1931. Its completion enabled passengers to travel the length of the Northeast Corridor without having to transfer to a ferry. Ammann initially estimated that the bridge would be mostly used by freight trains, because capacity constraints at Pennsylvania Station limited
32724-425: The rest of the electrification between New Brunswick and Trenton opened, giving a fully-electrified line between New York and Wilmington. Trains to Washington began running under electricity to Wilmington on February 12, 1933, with the engine-change moved from Manhattan Transfer to Wilmington. The same was done on April 9, 1933, for trains running west from Philadelphia, with the change point moved to Paoli. In 1933,
32926-528: The spans cross the Hell Gate , Little Hell Gate , and the Bronx Kill waterways, while the other two spans run above Randalls and Wards Islands. Including approach viaducts in the Bronx and Queens, the Hell Gate Bridge is composed of seven sections. Together with approaches, the bridge has been cited as being 15,840 feet (3.0 mi; 4.8 km), more than 17,000 feet (3.2 mi; 5.2 km), or 3.38 miles (17,800 ft; 5.44 km) long. Gustav Lindenthal
33128-614: The stage for later high-speed operation. NECIP also introduced the AEM-7 locomotive, which lowered travel times and became the most successful engine on the Corridor. The NECIP set travel time goals of 2 hours and 40 minutes between Washington and New York, and 3 hours and 40 minutes between Boston and New York. These goals were not met because of the low level of funding provided by the Reagan Administration and Congress in
33330-421: The suspension or cantilever proposals. The crescent-arch design would be thicker at its crown than at either end, while the spandrel-arch design would be thicker at its ends than at the crown. Although the crescent-arch design required less steel, Lindenthal liked the design of the spandrel arch because it appeared sturdier and because it complemented his designs for masonry towers at either end. Ultimately, he chose
33532-551: The time, and the Department of Transportation blocked the transaction and withheld purchase funds for several months until Amtrak granted it control over reconstruction of the corridor. In February 1975, the Preliminary System Plan for Conrail proposed to stop running freight trains on the NEC between Groton, Connecticut , and Hillsgrove, Rhode Island , but this clause was rejected the following month by
33734-486: The time, traffic to Long Island constituted 88 percent of the island's freight traffic volume. The Port Authority continued to advocate for allowing all railroads to use the bridge in both directions. The freight tracks were electrified in 1927. The Port Authority also asked the ICC to lower the fees charged on freight trains using the bridge. The ICC ruled in 1928 that the railroads were not required to lower their rates but that they were required to allow other railroads to use
33936-446: The towers and some adjacent piers could not be completed until after the Hell Gate span was finished. After the backstays were constructed, movable derricks were installed atop the backstays. One thousand workers and 40 engineers began installing the steelwork of the arch in November 1914; many of the laborers were Mohawk Native American ironworkers from Quebec and upstate New York. Work proceeded in two sections from either shore toward
34138-401: The towers support the tracks, but the towers are otherwise largely ornamental. The upper section of each tower contains archways on all four sides. There are also loophole -like openings flanking the tracks. The tops of the towers are surrounded by parapets . Space for railroad equipment, such as switch tower machinery, was provided on the roof of each tower. Northwest of the Hell Gate span,
34340-408: The tracks for the entire length of the deck. Four additional stringers were intended to support unbuilt walkways or trolley tracks on either side. These are intersected by 24 transverse floor beams. Sixteen of the transverse beams are suspended from the lower chord, while the other eight beams are riveted to the vertical trusses between the lower and upper chords. Additional girders are used to stabilize
34542-510: The viaduct curves about 90 degrees to the northeast, running along the east side of Wards and Randalls Islands. The viaduct above Wards Island is about 2,650 feet (810 m) long and consists of 30 plate girder sections, which are each between 86 and 93 feet (26 and 28 m) long. Each pier consists of a concrete arch measuring up to 120 feet (37 m) high and around 20 by 65 feet (6.1 by 19.8 m) across at its base. The arches are composed of two legs connected by an arched girder. North of
34744-438: The viaduct needed to curve north immediately upon reaching Wards Island; this ruled out the original cantilever design, which required a straight "anchor span". Instead, Lindenthal first considered a continuous truss bridge , a suspension bridge, and a cantilever bridge across Hell Gate. After rejecting all three designs, Lindenthal studied designs for a spandrel arch and a cantilever arch, both of which would be cheaper than either
34946-473: The viaducts shortly afterward. Beginning in the 1990s, local residents and students painted several murals under the Queens approach viaduct. Providence and Worcester Railroad freight trains carrying stone from quarries in Connecticut began using the bridge in 1996 to reach Long Island. The Oak Point Link near the bridge's Bronx end was completed in 1998, allowing freight trains from the Hudson Line (to
35148-432: The viaducts, causing rocks to come loose. City councilman Peter Vallone Sr. and U.S. representative Mario Biaggi advocated for Amtrak to repair the viaducts, saying the conditions threatened local residents' lives. Amtrak started repairing the viaducts in 1978 but paused the repairs the next year. When the project resumed in 1980, workers added welded steel plates on the trackbeds to prevent objects from falling. Even after
35350-414: The weight of the panels, both halves of the bridge occasionally had to be adjusted. The project as a whole was declared half-finished in July 1915. The last pieces of the lower chord were installed during the week of September 28 to October 4, 1915, and both halves were officially joined on October 1. The gap between the two parts of the arch was just 5 ⁄ 16 inch (7.9 mm). The extreme precision
35552-405: The west also had to make several tight turns to reach the Hell Gate Bridge. New York state voters approved a bond issue in 1974, which provided $ 250 million for numerous upgrades to New York City's railroads. The upgrades included modifications to allow double-stack freight trains to use the Hell Gate Bridge, thereby reducing the need for cargo trucks to travel through the city. Amtrak took over
35754-434: The west) to access the bridge without having to make multiple tight turns. In addition, as part of the 1998 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century , Congress allocated $ 15 million to repaint the bridge. By then, 34 Amtrak trains used the bridge daily. In the first decade of the 21st century, the bridge carried around 41 passenger trains per weekday, as well as less frequent freight-train service. Debris still fell from
35956-597: The world by pinnacle height, with its spire reaching a symbolic 1,776 feet (541.3 m), a reference to the year of U.S. independence . The Occupy Wall Street protests in Zuccotti Park in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan began on September 17, 2011, receiving global attention and popularizing the Occupy movement against social and economic inequality worldwide. New York City
36158-399: The world's longest cantilever span. The Port Chester Journal described the planned crossing as "an unusual bridge in point of engineering skill". The PRR requested a perpetual franchise for the bridge from the New York City Rapid Transit Commission that June. PRR vice president Samuel Rea requested in March 1904 that the Rapid Transit Commission approve the bridge and belt line, and charge
36360-399: The world, and would carry two passenger tracks and two freight tracks. The remainder of the bridge would be a viaduct made of reinforced concrete and steel plate girders. The plans were drawn up by consulting engineer Gustav Lindenthal and architects Palmer and Hornbostel . That June, the Rapid Transit Commission voted to amend the NYCR's franchise. The franchise allowed the NYCR to construct
36562-409: The world. In 1664, New York was named in honor of the Duke of York (later King James II of England ). James's elder brother, King Charles II , appointed the Duke as proprietor of the former territory of New Netherland , including the city of New Amsterdam , when the Kingdom of England seized it from Dutch control. In the pre-Columbian era , the area of present-day New York City
36764-403: The younger Vallone also unsuccessfully requested that Amtrak repaint the bridge throughout much of the 2000s. Following further reports of cracks and falling debris, Amtrak workers installed steel plates on the trackbed in the mid-2000s. Amtrak proposed raising rental fees for the land under the bridge's approach viaducts in 2006, in some cases as much as 100,000 percent. After further lobbying from
36966-410: The younger Vallone, Amtrak agreed to repair parts of the approach in 2008. The bridge's paint continued to fade during the 2010s. Local residents also requested that Amtrak add more lighting to the bridge, which was illuminated at night by a small number of lights below the deck. By early 2016, several local politicians were advocating for Amtrak to repaint the bridge in advance of its centennial, citing
37168-422: Was Juan Rodriguez , a merchant from Santo Domingo who arrived in Manhattan during the winter of 1613–14, trapping for pelts and trading with the local population as a representative of the Dutch colonists. A permanent European presence near New York Harbor was established in 1624, making New York the 12th-oldest continuously occupied European-established settlement in the continental United States , with
37370-440: Was heavily affected by Hurricane Sandy in late October 2012. Sandy's impacts included flooding that led to the days-long shutdown of the subway system and flooding of all East River subway tunnels and of all road tunnels entering Manhattan except the Lincoln Tunnel . The New York Stock Exchange closed for two days due to weather for the first time since the Great Blizzard of 1888 . At least 43 people died in New York City as
37572-411: Was a prime destination in the early 20th century for Blacks during the Great Migration from the American South, and by 1916, New York City had the largest urban African diaspora in North America. The Harlem Renaissance of literary and cultural life flourished during the era of Prohibition . The larger economic boom generated construction of skyscrapers competing in height. New York City became
37774-419: Was attributed to the level of detail in the engineering drawings, as well as the use of highly precise surveying tools made by the W. & L. E. Gurley Company . The completion of the arch made the Hell Gate span the longest steel arch in the world. The hydraulic jacks were removed from the towers, and the backstays were disassembled and reused in the approach viaducts. Workers began driving 400,000 rivets into
37976-497: Was built, piece by piece, by several railroads constructed as early as the 1830s. Before 1900, their routes had been consolidated as two long and unconnected stretches, each a part of a major railroad. Anchored in Washington, D.C., the stretch owned by the Pennsylvania Railroad , approached New York City from the south, anchored at Boston, the stretch owned by the New Haven Railroad , and entered New York State from Connecticut . The former terminated at New Jersey ferry slips across
38178-434: Was closed for an extended period during the 1970s, making the Hell Gate Bridge the only way for freight trains to get to and from Long Island during that time. One of the bridge's freight tracks was abandoned during that decade as well. The lack of rail crossings of the Hudson River , to the west, also meant that freight trains from Long Island had to detour to upstate New York just to travel west or south. Freight trains from
38380-400: Was completed, it was sometimes referred to specifically as the Hell Gate Bridge or as the East River Arch Bridge. The main span measures 1,017 feet (310 m) long between the outer faces of the masonry "towers" on either side of Hell Gate. The clear span (between the inner faces) is 977.5 feet (297.9 m), while the distance between the centers of these towers is 995 feet (303 m). At
38582-410: Was dedicated on March 9, 1917, and was the world's longest steel arch bridge until the Bayonne Bridge opened in 1931. Various proposals to modify the bridge in the 1920s were unsuccessful. The bridge was renovated in the 1990s following three decades of deterioration. The main span is a two-hinged arch flanked by stone towers on either bank of Hell Gate. Northwest of the Hell Gate span, the viaduct
38784-431: Was electrified on July 1, 1907. NH electrification began in July to New Rochelle , August to Port Chester and October the rest of the way to Stamford. Steam trains last operated into Grand Central on June 30, 1908: the deadline after which steam trains were banned in Manhattan. Subsequently, all NH passenger trains into Manhattan were electrified. In June 1914, the NH electrification was extended to New Haven , which
38986-450: Was founded. The Stamp Act Congress met in New York in October 1765, as the Sons of Liberty organization emerged in the city and skirmished over the next ten years with British troops stationed there. The Battle of Long Island , the largest battle of the American Revolutionary War , was fought in August 1776 within modern-day Brooklyn. A British rout of the Continental Army at the Battle of Fort Washington in November 1776 eliminated
39188-412: Was inhabited by Algonquians , including the Lenape . Their homeland, known as Lenapehoking , included the present-day areas of Staten Island , Manhattan , the Bronx , the western portion of Long Island (including Brooklyn and Queens ), and the Lower Hudson Valley . The first documented visit into New York Harbor by a European was in 1524 by explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano . He claimed
39390-412: Was intended to reduce noise pollution and is unusual for a railroad bridge. The February 2005 issue of Discover magazine estimated that, if humans were to disappear, the bridge could last for at least a millennium; most other bridges would fall in about 300 years. The main span is a spandrel arch across the Hell Gate strait, flanked by large stone towers on either bank of the strait. When the main span
39592-468: Was named New Amsterdam in 1626 and was chartered as a city in 1653. The city came under English control in 1664 and was temporarily renamed New York after King Charles II granted the lands to his brother, the Duke of York , before being permanently renamed New York in November 1674. New York City was the U.S. capital from 1785 until 1790. The modern city was formed by the 1898 consolidation of its five boroughs : Manhattan , Brooklyn , Queens ,
39794-438: Was operated by steam with an engine change at Sunnyside Yard east of Penn Station until 1918. Electrification north of New Haven to Providence and Boston had been planned by the NH, and authorized by the company's board of directors shortly before the United States entered World War I . This plan was not carried out because of the war and the company's financial problems. Electrification north of New Haven did not occur until
39996-427: Was opposed by then-acting Amtrak president David Gunn . The plan, supported by the Bush administration, would "turn over the Northeast Corridor – the tracks from Washington to Boston that are the railroad's main physical asset – to a federal-state consortium." With the passage of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 , the Congress established the Northeast Corridor Commission (NEC Commission) in
40198-415: Was the chief engineer for the bridge; he was assisted by the engineers Othmar Ammann and David B. Steinman . In addition, Henry Hornbostel was the bridge's architect. The Hell Gate Bridge is used exclusively as a railroad bridge, carrying passenger trains traveling between New York Penn Station and the Bronx, as well as freight trains heading between Queens and the Bronx. The Hell Gate Bridge parallels
40400-507: Was the terminus of electrified service for over 80 years. The PRR was building its Pennsylvania Station and electrified approaches, which were served by the PRR's lines in New Jersey and the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). LIRR electric service began in 1905 on the Atlantic Branch from downtown Brooklyn past Jamaica , and in June 1910 on the branch to Long Island City : part of the main line to Penn Station. Penn Station opened on September 8, 1910, for LIRR trains and November 27 for
40602-418: Was to be the fifth bridge across the East River (after the Brooklyn , Manhattan , Williamsburg , and Queensboro bridges), as well as the first built by a private company rather than the city government. By early 1910, the plans for the arch's piers were being revised, and surveyors were studying the route of the bridge and its approaches. The plans for the steelwork were revised the same year to accommodate
40804-454: Was to cost $ 5.5 million. The cantilever design was selected because it was cheaper than a suspension bridge of the same length. Construction of the bridge was to have begun in September 1900 and be completed in five years. Merchants from Brooklyn supported the bridge, saying it would reduce the cost of delivering goods to that borough. The bridge would also enable passenger trains from upstate New York and New England to travel to New Jersey via
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