Work on the Howland Hook Connection has begun

This was referenced in another topic, but also belongs here:

Couldn't resist and went by today at lunch. The new Bayway access road--which must have just opened--runs parallel to the connector to the CC and the new SIRT viaduct. Excellent view of the layout. The SIRT re-connection has a long way to go, if it ever happens. Serious grading and other issues remain. The tracks are not in yet in on the CC connection. Ties are being put in place from AK westward.

JLo wrote:This was referenced in another topic, but also belongs here:

Couldn't resist and went by today at lunch. The new Bayway access road--which must have just opened--runs parallel to the connector to the CC and the new SIRT viaduct. Excellent view of the layout. The SIRT re-connection has a long way to go, if it ever happens. Serious grading and other issues remain. The tracks are not in yet in on the CC connection. Ties are being put in place from AK westward.

Well, that is interesting - they had Bayway over the new connection down to one lane (with those portable traffic lights controlling direction) for what seemed like over a year, with little apparent progress (although I do remember seeing some progress there last month).
So, does Bayway now go straight to Amboy Ave. (I guess where the trash transfer station is) staying north of the SIRR, as opposed to the former configuration of curving South under the old SIRR trestle, to where the Strip club was? And was that part of Bayway was called Relocated Bayway Ave.? (If so, is it now Relocated Again Bayway?)

So, does Bayway now go straight to Amboy Ave. (I guess where the trash transfer station is) staying north of the SIRR, as opposed to the former configuration of curving South under the old SIRR trestle, to where the Strip club was? And was that part of Bayway was called Relocated Bayway Ave.? (If so, is it now Relocated Again Bayway?)

The part of Bayway that was Relocated Bayway has indeed been relocated again. It no longer curves under the SIRR trestle but comes to a T at First St. Original Bayway is now a long dead-end from First to the Turnpike.

JLo wrote:The part of Bayway that was Relocated Bayway has indeed been relocated again. It no longer curves under the SIRR trestle but comes to a T at First St. Original Bayway is now a long dead-end from First to the Turnpike.

Heh, amusingly I was just in that location this morning, and drove along the wonderful new re-relocated Bayway (That silly underposted 25mph limit has GOT to go) - they still haven't finished the bridge over the future connection I see (those lane-control traffic lights are getting on my nerves).
Anyway, a little north of the SIRR connection, west of Front St and north of the Chemical unloading rack, there are usually a small locomotive (which switch the chemical firm); I usually see the red one which looks like a GE of the 45-65 tonner class (this sometimes is on the East side of Front Street on one of the three sidings which cross it); today there was a yellow one today which may be a GE industrial type (I think I have also seen this around that area before) - can you identify it further?

Time to bump this thread, which has become the de-factor SIRR (Chemical Coast to Arlington Yard & Travis Yard) thread.
Not a whole lot to add, except it looks as if the sidings for Visy have been finally laid. North of (the slightly truncated - it now ends at the bus turn-around) western End of Victory Blvd, and parallel to it, there were two sidings embedded in concrete pads (as you would find in an intermodal yard). The sidings come together at a switch to the southwest, and I an not entirely sure if they will curve back north to connect to the extended travis branch, or continue south - it was a bit hard to make out, and unfortunately the service roads along the West Shore Expressway which would have made viewing easier were never finished. I guess it'll will give me something to look at when I pass by in a few months or so...
The grade crossing at South Ave looks finally finished (and Meredith Ave crosses the Travis Branch on a bridge which is quite large for the traffic it sees, until you realize that the unbuilt service roads would have made it nearly as busy as Victory Blvd in terms of crossover traffic - Oh, yeah, on preview that Meredith Ave remarks seems random, but what I meant was that South Ave is the only Major road on the Travis to need a grade crossing (I...think...well, according to this Geographia atlas), as Meredith crosses Travis and the West Shore on a large highway bridge, and Victory Ave now terminates East of where the Travis is supposed to be routed) - North of that to Arlington Yard should be clear sailing, what with the Bridge across the SI Expressway and all)
I didn't see much new on the Jersey Side (well, the entire route from AK to the new Bayway has ties - although this may have have ties for a while now), and the rail is piling up at the actually Chemical Coast connection (I could not linger, as this is the one lane section of Bayway, I had the green signal, and I wasn't about to risk a head-on collision by dilly-dallying.
So, all-in-all, construction is continuing to plod forward (at a rate that would embarass even the least ambitious member of a unenthusastic railroad preservation society), and should be completed within the lifetimes of some of our younger members...

This project looks like its almost done. I was surprised to see that the original SIRT is connected with looks like a power switch to the new connecting track, although there are no track siginals .

On the Coast its interesting that the main track has a small dwarf siginal in both North and South direction, but the connecting track has a Two head High mast siginal.

NYSW2300 wrote:This project looks like its almost done. I was surprised to see that the original SIRT is connected with looks like a power switch to the new connecting track, although there are no track siginals .

Does this mean that the M&E will be going to staten island now?

NS1 wrote:Does this mean that the M&E will be going to staten island now?

Heh - it's not they're going down to Bayway a whole lot nowadays.
I am impressed that the PA included such a future 'routing', but for now the routing is SIRR across AK and the new connection to the Chemical Coast (northbound).

NS1 wrote:

NYSW2300 wrote:This project looks like its almost done. I was surprised to see that the original SIRT is connected with looks like a power switch to the new connecting track, although there are no track siginals .

Does this mean that the M&E will be going to staten island now?

Maybe those Steel Bridge beams over by the gate into the refinery will be used for the old wooden tressle over the Coast Line

Any idea when trains will start to run over the Howland Hook into Staten Island?

Thank You!

I thought someone else had covered this, Staten Island I do not believe is M&E's service area, I'm not sure if the exact provisions are Conrail Shared Services or CSX / NS with equal access.

I thought I read that Shared Assets is getting the Staten Island business.

The steel beams laying in the weeds were supposed to be used to shore up the bridge over the Northeast Corridor, but engineers supposedly later discovered that the issues did not need this type of repair, and were taken care of...

Interesting reading....So I am guessing the chances are good that the STB board will approve CSX and NS petition to operate the line?