The Bergen Tunnels are a pair of railroad tunnels with open cuts running parallel to each other under

Bergen Hill Bergen Hill refers to the lower Hudson Palisades in New Jersey, where they emerge on Bergen Neck, which in turn is the peninsula between the Hackensack and Hudson Rivers, and their bays. In Hudson County, it reaches a height of 260 feet. Rai ...

in Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S. Originally built by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W), they are used by

New Jersey Transit Rail Operations NJ Transit Rail Operations is the rail division of NJ Transit. It operates commuter rail service in New Jersey, with most service centered on transportation to and from New York City, Hoboken, and Newark. NJ Transit also operates rail servic ...

(NJT) trains originating or terminating at

Hoboken Terminal Hoboken Terminal is a commuter-oriented intermodal passenger station in Hoboken, Hudson County, New Jersey. One of the New York metropolitan area's major transportation hubs, it is served by nine NJ Transit (NJT) commuter rail lines, one Metr ...

Construction

Prior to construction, the

Morris and Essex Railroad The Morris and Essex Railroad was a railroad across northern New Jersey, later part of the main line of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. History The M&E was incorporated January 29, 1835, to build a line from Newark in Essex Co ...

, a predecessor of the DL&W, used the

Long Dock Tunnel The Long Dock Tunnel is a freight rail tunnel in Jersey City, New Jersey that is part of the North Jersey Shared Assets Area and used by CSX Transportation on the National Docks Secondary. The single track (formerly dual track) tunnel runs thro ...

, owned by the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake Er ...

, to pass under the

Hudson Palisades The Palisades, also called the New Jersey Palisades or the Hudson River Palisades, are a line of steep cliffs along the west side of the lower Hudson River in Northeastern New Jersey and Southeastern New York in the United States. The cliffs s ...

. After issues of congestion and competition arose, the DL&W decided to build its own tunnel for what is commonly known as its

Morristown Line The Morristown Line is an NJ Transit commuter rail line connecting Morris and Essex counties to New York City, via either New York Penn Station or Hoboken Terminal. Out of 60 inbound and 58 outbound daily weekday trains, 28 inbound and 26 outbou ...

. Construction of the North Bergen Tunnel began in 1873; it came into service in 1877. The South Bergen Tunnel opened in 1910, soon after a new

was inaugurated. Both tunnels are approximately long, and have two short segments of open

cut Cut may refer to: Common uses * The act of cutting, the separation of an object into two through acutely-directed force ** A type of wound ** Cut (archaeology), a hole dug in the past ** Cut (clothing), the style or shape of a garment ** Cut (ea ...

as well as ventilation shafts.

Rehabilitation

In 2001, New Jersey Transit contracted JV Merco-Obayashi for the rehabilitation of the partially brick-lined North Bergen Tunnel. This included the stabilization of the two open cuts. The five ventilation shafts were stabilized and backfilled. Brick was removed so that the tunnel could be enlarged using drill-and-blast methods, following which it was relined with

shotcrete Shotcrete, gunite (), or sprayed concrete is concrete or mortar conveyed through a hose and pneumatically projected at high velocity onto a surface, as a construction technique, first used in 1907 invented by Carl Akeley. It is typically ...

. A drained membrane waterproofing system was installed before a final lining of concrete was cast-in-place. In addition to waterproofing ceilings and walls, new electrical, signal and ventilation systems were installed as were new emergency exits. New tracks were affixed directly to a new concrete floor.

Historic status

The tunnels are part of New Jersey's

state historic preservation office The State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) is a state governmental function created by the United States federal government in 1966 under Section 101 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). The purposes of a SHPO include surveying an ...

historic district, designated the Old Main Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Historic District. They were documented in 2001 for the

Historic American Engineering Record Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...

References

External links

* * * Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, North Bergen Tunnel (1877) * Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, South Bergen Tunnel 1911 {{New Jersey Transit Rail NJ Transit Rail Operations Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad tunnels Railroad tunnels in New Jersey Transportation in Jersey City, New Jersey Tunnels completed in 1877 Tunnels completed in 1910 Tunnels in Hudson County, New Jersey 1877 establishments in New Jersey

Construction

Rehabilitation

Historic status

See also

References

External links