New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-11-08
BUFFALO TWENTY
MINUTES NEARER
/ ackaWanna'S S12,000,000
Cutoff, 40 Miles Long,
Opened Yesterday.
GIANT TUNKHANNOCK
VIADUCT LAST LINK
ninth Wonder" Saves SO Miles,
but Cuts Down High Grades
and Curvature.

Passengers riding between New York
and Buffalo over the Lackawanna yes
terdav we're able TO save more than
twenty minutes, for trains were run
over the Tunkhannock Viaduct for the
first time. The giant concrete struct-
ure. half mile long. was formally
opened to public traffic. completing the
last link in the S12.OOO,OOO forty-mile
cutoff between Clark's Summit and
Hallstead. Penn.
1.-THE ninth wonder Of the world" is
what the Lackawanna's engineers call
the great viaduct. which is 2,375 feet
long. $40 feet high and composed Of
ten 1SO-foot and two l00-foot spans.
Although the entire forty-mile cutoff
saves only SO miles in actual distance.
il reduces a maximum grade Of l.23
per cent TO .65 per cent. and a former
total curvature of $3.50 degrees to
1870 degrees. This means that be-
sides the twenty-minute gain for pas
senger trains. freight trains can save
T. whole hour. and trains which for
merlv required five engines can at the
same rate of speed be manipulated by
two. The Lackawanna Railroad in
vested S12.00000O, because they fig
ured they could save the interest on
that sum by making the change.
If the Flatiron Building were con-
tinued up Broadway from Twenty-third
Street to Thirty-second Street, filing
the street from building line to build
ing line, it would represent a structure
Of lust about the size and dimensions
as the viaduct. II contains 100000
cubic feet of concrete and 2,2SO,OOO
pounds Of reinforcing steel.
Another viaduct which receives little
attention only because il is dwarfed by
the Tunkhannock project is the Mar
tins Creek Niaduct, about nine miles
west Of the first bridge. Being 1,6OO
feet long and composed Of eleven
spans. seven OF $50 feet, two Of 100
feet and two Of 90 feet. it is the larg-
est concrete bridge in the world. ex-
copting only Tunkhannock.
These tremendous viaducts are but
two links in the forty-mile chain which
includes vast excavations and huge
mounds constructed to plane the eccen-
tricitics of nature down to the level re-
Quired BY twentieth century railroad
ing. A double track tunnel $500 feet
long. only 600 feet shorter than the
Bergen Hill Tunnel. offered engineers
a problem of still another variety.
This tunnel. which has two 135-foot
ventilating shafts lined with concrete,
recessitatcd excavating 100000 cubic
yards Of earth. The work on the entire
cutoff, from the date the first steam
shovel was put into motion. June. 1872.
10 completion. required the removal Of
100000 cubic yards of dirt and rock.
George J. Raw planned and executed
the work over the whole of the cutoff,
and f. L. Wheaton was chief engineer
in charge Of the immediate work The
Tunkhannock Niaduct was built under
the personal supervision Of +. NJ. al
bot.
The work Of the cutoff, in the opin-
ion of experts, is a striking reminder
that By 10 means all original and dar-
ing railway engineering is confined to
the mountains of the Far West. The
Lackawanna cutoff is so notable an
example Of modern railroad construc-
tion that several foreign governments
had arranged TO send over representa-
tives on tours Of inspection. and were
only prevented from so doing by the
general state Of war.