metsfan Posted May 2, 2009 Share #26 Posted May 2, 2009 Word. The inside needs to be drained of rainwater & refinished, the trackbed cleaned and re-enforced underneath, and new bracing needs to be put under/between the secondary arches (on the underside of the deck beam and between) and signaling conduits put in and new drains etc. Wouldnt cost that much, and would take about 3 years. - A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R44 5278 Posted May 3, 2009 Author Share #27 Posted May 3, 2009 I was just kidding, but it'll certainly not take 3 years. It's more like a few months excluding the track. I'm not sure if the steel bracing is necessary because the bridge was built to carry steam trains, which were much heavier than the modern diesel trains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metsfan Posted May 3, 2009 Share #28 Posted May 3, 2009 I was just kidding, but it'll certainly not take 3 years. It's more like a few months excluding the track. I'm not sure if the steel bracing is necessary because the bridge was built to carry steam trains, which were much heavier than the modern diesel trains. I've seen photos of the inside. I know it was built in the steam era, however age and disuse has to be taken into consideration. All the metal inside is rusted, and its kind of a mess. Most steam trains didn't go faster than 65 mph. Even the fastest ones that would run that route didnt go past 75. The dynamic loading is different, plus imagine if a tank ruptured for whatever reason & fire... You gotta do what you can to sure it up for another how many decades. The main arches & the piers are in perfect condition, however the upper section including the deck beams and secondary arches need a bit of work. This is mostly due to lack of attention since the line was abandoned. The engineering is still sound, but you don't want to take any chances. - A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R44 5278 Posted May 4, 2009 Author Share #29 Posted May 4, 2009 I really wished that they would electrify the line to upgrade the speed to 110 mph. But once the dual-mode locos hit the spotlight, I knew that it would never happen. If they electrified it, Amtrak could maybe use the route on their future plans for Binghamton and perhaps increase the speed even more. Seriously, 79 mph might be very high for a diesels, but the Pequest Fill should be built to carry at least 125 mph trains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaback9 Posted May 4, 2009 Share #30 Posted May 4, 2009 The P42 can max out at 110(allowed by the FRA I'm sure in tests it may have been higher). So Amtrak if they were to run trains could easily do 110. The Binghamton route is a dream right now, lets get this thing to Scranton first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metsfan Posted May 5, 2009 Share #31 Posted May 5, 2009 Yea, i agree, fix the NJ rails first, then see if it works and then see if amtrak has an interest in doing 3-5 stop service. This is probably 15-25 years away. - A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R44 5278 Posted May 18, 2009 Author Share #32 Posted May 18, 2009 Here are some photos from Thomas Taber's 20th Century Part I: All of them are on the Lower Hack: The first bridge: The second bridge: The second bridge with the third bridge constructing: The third and present bridge (without catenaries yet): Courtesy of AndyB from Railroad Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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