The New Jersey Transit Authority urged commuters in Manhattan to work from home for up to a month if possible because of a major railroad upgrade that is expected to boost travel into New York City starting Tuesday morning.
The national rail operator, Amtrak, will move some train traffic over the new bridge in a travel-snarling project that is expected to last until March 15 and cause widespread delays and fewer trains under the Hudson River, according to the New York Times.
The work is part of a $16bn Gateway infrastructure project that Donald Trump has repeatedly tried to block. Trains currently travel over the 116-year-old Portal Bridge, which spans 961 feet (293 meters) over the Hackensack River in New Jersey. About 200,000 people cross the bridge daily, which is part of Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor rail line and is “the busiest in the Western Hemisphere,” according to the Times.
Weekend train service will be reduced to 178 trains daily, down from 332, NJ.com reported, so Amtrak crews can complete infrastructure and signaling work to allow one of the Northeast Corridor tracks to be called the Portal North Bridge.
Some trains that normally reach Midtown Manhattan are diverted to Hoboken, New Jersey.
The bridge suffered chronic problems such as fires and drawbridge malfunctions.
“The Portal Bridge has been anathema and a nightmare for riders in the Northeast Corridor for decades,” NJ Transit’s CEO, Chris Colluri, told ABC 7 News. “Finally there will be a brand new bridge for the first time in 116 years.”
Some riders may take another train, PATH, to New York City, but the diversion is poised to increase widespread demand for the service. Transit officials in New Jersey are advising commuters to work from home if possible.
The Gateway Project will also build a new commuter rail tunnel under the Hudson and rehabilitate a heavily trafficked century-old tunnel that was damaged in Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and often requires emergency repairs.
Trump continues to threaten federal funding for Gateway. A federal judge recently overturned his Gateway funding freeze amid reports that Penn Station in Manhattan and Dulles Airport near Washington were being sought to be named after him instead. (Trump says others have made this suggestion.)
The US president again complained about Gateway on Monday, writing on social media: “I oppose the future boondoggle called ‘Gateway’ in New York/New Jersey because it will cost many billions of dollars more than estimated or expected.” He said the gateway “would be an economic disaster for the region if hard work and proper planning is not done now to avoid insurmountable costs in the future.”
Proponents argue the construction will create 20,000 jobs. Although the federal government released some money to Gateway after the court decision, officials say another Trump funding freeze could cause delays and job losses.
