The New York Tunnel Extension of the Pennsylvania Railroad. | Page 4

partly of cellar earth, and partly of rock and
earth excavated from other sections of the Pennsylvania Tunnel and
Terminal Railroad, being brought on scows up the Hackensack and

Passaic Rivers from New York City. The material was handled
expeditiously from the scows by orange-peel buckets operated from the
shore, deposited in standard-gauge dump-cars, and transported by
locomotives at one time used on the elevated railroads in New York
City. No excavation whatever was required on the Meadows Division
or in the Harrison Yard.
[Illustration: PLATE XVIII.--Details of Shelters and Platforms,
Harrison Transfer Station.]
[Illustration: PLATE XIX.--Details of Shelters and Platforms, Harrison
Transfer Station.]
The substructures for all the bridges, except the Hackensack River
Draw-bridge, are of concrete, without reinforcement, heavy enough to
withstand the ordinary earth pressure for the exposed height. With the
exception of three bridges, foundations were built on clay and sand;
these three, on account of excessive depth of soft material, were built
on piles. In some cases loose stone was deposited back of the
foundations for a width of 10 or 12 ft. after the mud had been removed.
This precaution has prevented trouble due to the thrust of the high
embankments on the saturated material. Masonry for all these bridges
was constructed under contract dated August 21st, 1905, with
McMullen and McDermott, of New York City. The superstructure
consisted principally of half-through girders, floor of I-beams, filled
solid with concrete, on top of which were placed five layers of Hydrex
felt, and water-proofing compound, protected by a layer of sand and
grouted brick from the stone ballast.
The bridges over the New York Division passenger and Newark freight
tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad, and the main-line tracks of the
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, at the west end of the
Meadows Division, are separated by 300 ft. of embankment. The skew
angle is 9°, the total length of each bridge being about 450 ft. The
floors consist of I-beams embedded in concrete.
The Hackensack River Draw-bridge consists of six spans of deck plate
girders, each 110 ft. long, and a draw-span 300 ft. long, operated by

two 70-h.p. electric motors. The masonry was constructed under
contract dated August 25th, 1905, with the Drake and Stratton
Company, of Philadelphia; and the steelwork was furnished and erected
by the Pennsylvania Steel Company, of Steelton, Pa. An important and
interesting feature of the draw-bridge is the lift rail, and new
rail-locking device. Mitered rails are used, with sufficient opening
between the ends to prevent binding at times of expansion. It was
deemed advisable that the mitered joint should occur on the abutment,
or fixed span, instead of at the opening at the end of the draw. The lift
rail, therefore, was a necessity; and the design, as shown on Plate XX,
was perfected. It consists of lift-rails, 8 ft. 4 in. long, moving vertically
8 in. at the free end, reinforced on both sides by sliding steel castings,
which are lifted with the rail; when the latter is dropped in place, the
wedges on the castings engage at the abutment and heel joints and at
one intermediate point in dove-tailed wedge seats, insuring tight
contact with the rail, and absolute fastening to the deck of the bridge.
The objection to the ordinary lift-rail, which in lowering must make its
own joint by seating in tight boxes, has been that any slight deviation
from a true line would prevent the rail from seating itself properly. This
objection has been entirely overcome in this design, by allowing liberal
clearance on all seats, and securing rigidity by the sliding bars and
wedges which are connected with the inter-locking system, so that it is
impossible for a clear signal to be given unless the lift-rails and wedges
are in their proper positions. This device has been operated successfully
on the New York and Long Branch Railroad bridge over Raritan Bay
for the last 18 months.
Each of the two main tracks on the Meadows Division, and all the main
tracks in the Harrison Transfer Yard, are of standard construction, with
Pennsylvania Section, 1909, 100-lb., open-hearth steel rails, and stone
ballast. Every fifth tie is made 9 ft. 5 in. long, to carry the third rail for
the electric current, and all joints of the running rails are bonded for the
same purpose. Track-laying on the Meadows, and in Harrison Transfer
Yard, has been done under contract dated April 26th, 1909, with Henry
Steers, Incorporated, of New York City.
Samuel Rea, M. Am. Soc. C. E., Second Vice-President, Pennsylvania

Railroad Company, is the executive officer under whose direction the
work has been carried on. Mr. William H. Brown, Chief Engineer,
Pennsylvania Railroad Company, and Chief Engineer of the Meadows
Division, also a Member of the Board of Consulting Engineers for the
tunnel extension, until his