President Visits NJ TRANSIT Rail Maintenance Facility

NJ TRANSIT had the honor of hosting President Joe Biden October 25, 2021, at the Meadows Maintenance Complex in Kearny, where all of our agency’s heavy rail maintenance is performed. The President was joined by Governor Phil Murphy, members of the New Jersey congressional delegation, State legislative leaders, union representatives and other dignitaries to break ground on the Portal North Bridge project and support the President’s $1 trillion infrastructure bill.

The Portal North Bridge will replace the 110-year-old Portal Bridge on the Northeast Corridor, which spans the Hackensack River and is the source of delays during unreliable bridge openings for maritime traffic. When completed in approximately five-and-a-half years, the new bridge will improve the reliability of Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast Line, MidTOWN DIRECT and Amtrak rail service between Newark and New York, increase rail capacity, and spur economic growth in New Jersey and the surrounding region.

“Today, we are moving forward on a new bridge so that it will be higher over the water, so it won't need to open and close, and allow us to increase speed, safety, efficiency, and capacity,” said President Biden. "It’s going to make life a lot better for New Jersey's commuters."

“The Portal North Bridge is the beginning of the largest critical infrastructure project in our nation, and with President Biden’s leadership, we are embarking on the path to completion of the Gateway Program,” said Governor Murphy. “I look forward to continuing our work with his Administration on rebuilding our regional infrastructure to serve New Jersey residents and commuters.”

The construction zone of the Portal North Bridge project covers nearly two-and-a-half miles, and will consist of retaining walls, deep foundations, concrete piers, structural steel bridge spans, rail systems, and related incidental work. 

The NJ TRANSIT Board of Directors recently awarded a $1.56 billion contract for the Portal North Bridge to Skanska/Traylor Bros Joint Venture of Queens, New York, the single largest construction award in the history of NJ TRANSIT. The project is being funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation, NJ TRANSIT and Amtrak, which includes a Full Funding Grant Agreement of $766.5 million from the Federal Transit Administration.

For more information on the Portal North Bridge project, click here.

President Biden arrives by motorcade at the event.

 

President Joe Biden speaks at the NJ TRANSIT Meadows Maintenance Complex in Kearny.

 

Governor Phil Murphy and Congressman Bill Pascrell