en.Wedoany.com Reported - Amtrak and NJ Transit are advancing early construction on the Sawtooth Bridges Replacement Project, supported by a $133 million federal-state partnership grant.

In a joint statement with NJ Transit, Amtrak officials said the Sawtooth Bridges project will replace nearly 120-year-old infrastructure. It is one of the projects within the larger Gateway Program, which aims to strengthen the Northeast Corridor (NEC) through a series of investments in critical infrastructure.

Located in Kearny, New Jersey, these bridges were originally built in 1907, connecting Newark Penn Station and Secaucus Junction, and include approximately 1.9 miles of track along the Northeast Corridor. The bridges carry Amtrak's NEC Tracks 2 and 3, spanning the intersecting elevated structures of NJ Transit's Morris and Essex Line, Conrail's Center Street Branch, and the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) Newark-World Trade Center line.

The project plans to construct three new bridges. The first bridge will shift NJ Transit's Morris and Essex tracks further north to allow for the construction of the second bridge; the second bridge will be built adjacent to the existing Sawtooth Bridges, carrying two new NEC tracks; the third bridge will replace the existing structure, carrying the two existing NEC tracks. Amtrak officials said that by replacing the existing bridges and adding two new tracks, the project will increase capacity on this critical corridor, reducing service disruptions and congestion. Additionally, trains will be able to operate at speeds of up to 90 mph on the new bridges, up from the current 60 mph speed limit.