New-York tribune., 1896-01-16
THURSDAY.
JANUARY is. 1896.
To SPAN THE HARLEM.
THE NEw-YORK CENTRALs RAILROAD
BRIDGE.
coMPANY.s TRACKS RAISED TO HEIGHT %
TwENTY-FOUR FEET ABOVE THE CANAL
cUANGING THE APPROACHES


CHANGING THE APPROACHES.
While it will in all probability be two months OF
more before the new bridge OF the New-York Cen
trail and Hudson River Railroad over the Harlem
River is completed for traffic. engineers test
of the bridge is to be made either this week or
the next. The date has not been definitely de-
termined. This s,upendous piece OF engineering
has been going on at the upper end OF Manhattan
Island for almost three years. The bridge is being
built at the spot where the several raiiroaos e'oss
the Harlem River at Mott Haven
The railroads are raising their tracks far ABOVE
the original roadbeds, while at the same time tns
daily traffic of 200 trains goes on uninterrupteo'
Three millions of dollars is the sum that mas peeo
expended in building this great bridge and in bring
ing the tracks 10 adjustment suitable 10 tne
new conditions created by the deep water connec-
ton between the Hudson River and Long isiahd
Sound. The city is paying a part OF tnis *'"""v''
The cost entaied by all Of the improvements soutn
OF the Harlem River this island Is being pa'o
equally by the city and the railroads
Mr. Depew, when speaking of the great TASK Oh
eleyatIng the tracks said 1--WE thought We had
solved the problem for the future when we SUNK
the tracks through the high ground IN harie"''
but now that work is all destroyed ana We @rs
preparing for the future over again ihis WON
is not being done in a careless way. II Is 10 Do
final AMI lasting The ship canal. in the nrs' paee'
is a mistaken idea. IL is to be supposed that
within few years the city VIII tolerate the 'n-
convenience of having the canal cut the CITY a"
twain Therefore | look upon the canal as oh'y
temporary contrivance. 1t VIII be hned up anu
buiI, over within few years. This bridge, now
over was made necessary by the conditions OF the
canal and the bridge is being built 10 stand for
all time. 49,.
Walter Katie the chief engineer OF the New
York Central Railroad Is in charge OF the WORK
THIS bridge is a triumph for him. "hen '.' ~"
bridge Is finished the temporary bridge wnich 'ur-
ing rho time OF the building OF the new bridge has
carried all the tremendous traffic. whicn mas never
been obstructed for day. VIII be anan'oheu. "'e'
the railway passes out OF the 'u""ei "
sixth-st IL mounts solid masonry Vdu''' ''1
above the low level Of the Harlem mats 'n,s
s,onework maintains the same read lever UNI"
,I,rlor, tJul * reached at One-hurdfed-and-siA'"-
=, and from that point the north SIDE oi INV
hill AT One-hundred- and-thrt'etn-s'' 'ne """
are sunk in the hill to keep the s'rash' n"e VI"
altered A few blocks further ahead II 'he nai
lem River now deepened into snip cana" i'
the railways have been crossing on the same ie'e'
-, len fse. above the water Hereafter 70
nrov,de nassageway for large vessels the prlds'
must carry the trains at an elevation OF twenty
four feet above high water. Ihis requirement
csssitated the building OF the new dfa"p'"se "'1
the elevation Of the tracks TO connec, WIZ" '''e -
bridge The bridge has 4oo-foot draw at tne so"'"
egn end. and two spans Oh l'' anu ~
lively beyond that. . ~.
To meet this arbitrary condition the oip 'oad"'
has been altered as far back as Ohe-h"'u'
n'x,b-s. Tbere the old masonry via duct has been
ra,ssd ,,ron a gradient Of forty feet TO the mile as
far as One-hundred- -and-eleventn-st' FROM ''S.
noin, onward a metallic vafuct or hea'y e'e'a'e"
rauuav has been built to carry the trains over tne
Harlem Hll at a distance OF fourteen l.e. ,;ore
The summit Of the hill and down agaih 4. s.ss "a
over the ship canal The upward lhc.. po V nd
-, - tho mile continues from One-nuhdrei, ihu-
sixth to One-hundred- -and-s ixteenth-st' W1,sn Wsn in
the TOP OF the hill. Thence by more i isve vel
line he new elevated road returSs 10 the oa iey
at One-hundre land forty mini A-s; Mhcr va re fo
oin n. Hudson River division. Three Staaions: =.
One hundred and-tenth-st ~, - he
a sIsveted stations That az Onc-hundrei- and
tenthst Is in the stone vladuct That al onsnHn nEn
trsrk and now is raised thirty feet IN ar Inc
Mott Haven station now has It's ssCTh' esch' ss' ,bs
the road level ar ana i,.,s passengers
snce y the new roadbed is to accommodate four
tracks, the engineer has h4 Mott IT. Haven :iy feet
btrk from where used to stand to maze s ,ont a1o in
for two more Track That Tas one no;S9' S creatcst T
W.. the task Of ADAPTING tie elevatsl ra,lNy hat
cple To hsh-ciass heavy 'raine. ~ ~ Sn,v, t-afic
n .ho rsn,,iste strength o. steel. The lesult -
what he calls three column plate-gr ef % h,,,,
,ior Tyniainei in the simplest way. he mas onIit
w hros'}sg,el road. ana Spanned the spaces .oe-
sc,e@n elh Trio Of leFsl With grders mir o pah phs
n,iht he called open-work trusses such a. one sees
N sNn Elevated structure will look as that IN
me ne" r orV ,bat In Second-ave. would II those
roads we're supported on rows of thtee lnstean & os
two legs The middle es Is N easn tbese central
aos,S - Iii carry double as much a. the others. Az
he point OF passing OF TWO trans; l9' n,ah,
M .hc & Iocpnotlves and half the weight Of the en-
tire structure. There Is no sfce' h nuttng ri into
elte,i So number of pounds OF steel required to
match ma the load each leg Will have 10 carry