Delair Bridge
| Company type | Railroad bridge |
|---|---|
| Industry | Transportation / Rail transport |
| Founded | 1895 |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , United States |
Area served | Delaware River (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Pennsauken Township, New Jersey) |
| Products | Rail crossing for freight and passenger trains |
| Owner | Conrail Shared Assets Operations |
The Delair Bridge is a railroad structure featuring a vertical-lift segment that spans the Delaware River, connecting Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with Pennsauken Township, New Jersey. It is situated just south of the Betsy Ross Bridge. This dual-track bridge is operated by Conrail Shared Assets Operations and accommodates freight trains run by Norfolk Southern Railway and CSX Transportation, along with the New Jersey Transit Atlantic City Line passenger service.
History
Built during 1895–1896 by the Delaware River Railroad and Bridge Company, a branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), the Delair Bridge was the inaugural structure linking Philadelphia to New Jersey. It connected PRR rail lines in North Philadelphia to southern New Jersey via three fixed Pennsylvania truss spans and a through-truss swing-span drawbridge, measuring in total . The approach trestles extended approximately on the Pennsylvania side and on the New Jersey side, culminating in an overall length of .
From 1958 to 1960, PRR enhanced the bridge by replacing the swing span with a vertical-lift section to increase clearance over the river. This movable span was installed as a single unit to reduce operational interruptions. Upon completion, it held the distinction of being the longest and heaviest double-track lift bridge globally, exceeding all similar bridges except for the slightly longer single-track Cape Cod Canal Railroad Bridge.
In the late 1930s, electrification was introduced to permit electric freight locomotives to reach Pavonia Yard in Camden, New Jersey from the Northeast Corridor. This electrified system was dismantled by January 1967 but reinstated in May 1973. Conrail terminated electric freight operations in 1981 and subsequently removed the overhead wiring.
Passenger rail service ceased in 1969 when Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines reduced operations to Lindenwold station following the launch of the PATCO Speedline. Service recommenced in 1989 with Amtrak's Atlantic City Express, which ended in 1995. Meanwhile, since 1993, the New Jersey Transit Atlantic City Line has provided continuous service.
Initially, freight trains used the southern track while passenger trains utilized the northern track. The construction of the Pennsauken Transit Center introduced platforms on both tracks near where the River LINE passes beneath the eastern approach, allowing both tracks to accommodate passenger and freight traffic.
21st century rehabilitation
In December 2011, the South Jersey Port Corporation secured an $18.5 million grant through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program from the United States Department of Transportation to partially support rehabilitation efforts on the Delair Bridge. These infrastructure upgrades were completed, improving rail connectivity for both freight and passenger services within the area.
See also
- List of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Pennsylvania
- List of crossings of the Delaware River
External links
- Delair Bridge featured on "Workshop of the World"
- Michael Froio's 2015 reconstruction video
- Articles with short description
- Railroad bridges located in New Jersey
- Vertical lift bridge structures in the United States
- Vertical lift bridges within New Jersey
- Bridges finalized in 1896
- Railroad bridges situated in Pennsylvania
- Bridges found in Philadelphia
- Bridges positioned in Camden County, New Jersey
- Bridges spanning the Delaware River
- Pennsylvania Railroad bridge constructions
- NJ Transit bridge assets
- Pennsauken Township, New Jersey infrastructure
- Historic American Engineering Record sites in Philadelphia
- Tower structures in Pennsylvania
- Steel bridge engineering in the United States
- Pennsylvania truss bridge designs in the United States
- Interstate railroad bridge systems in the United States
- South Jersey Port Corporation facilities
- NJ Transit bridges