Arthur Kill Bridge in operation
Trains have begun rumbling across the Arthur Kill rail lift bridge between Staten Island, N.Y., and New Jersey, and if all goes according to plan, ocean containers should be moving across the 48-year-old bridge.
The bridge, which had been closed since 1990, reopened Monday. A train carrying 16 containers filled with about 150 tons of New York City garbage was carried from Staten Island to a transfer station in Elizabeth. From there, the trash will be railed to landfills in other states.
The bridge, originally built in 1959 by the B&O Railroad, reopened after $160 million in repairs financed by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
Traffic across the bridge will initially consist of trash trains, but in several weeks container trains from the New York Container Terminal on Howland Hook are expected to start up. The terminal recently completed work on a new on-dock rail yard.
Intermodal rail moves are expected to alleviate congestion on area roadways, including the Goethals Bridge, which is adjacent to the Arthur Kill Lift Bridge.