Passaic River
The Passaic River ( or ) is a river, approximately long, in North Jersey, northern New Jersey. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburb ...
in
northeastern New Jersey
The Gateway Region is the primary urbanized area of the northeastern section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The region is anchored by Newark, the state's most populous city, and constitutes part of the New York metropolitan area.
The area enc ...
, United States. It connects the City of
Passaic
Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city was the state's 16th-most-populous municipality,Passaic County
Passaic County ( or ) is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey that is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the county was the state's eighth-most-populous county,
Bergen County
Bergen County is the List of counties in New Jersey, most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.County Route 507 in Wallington.
Originally opened in 1915 as a
bascule bridge
A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...
, the bridge was fixed in place in 1977. The Eighth Street Bridge was closed to traffic permanently on July 24, 2017 so work could begin on its replacement, which was completed in 2019.
Location and operations
Eighth Street Bridge passes over the
Passaic
Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city was the state's 16th-most-populous municipality,river mouth
A river mouth is where a river flows into a larger body of water, such as another river, a lake/reservoir, a bay/gulf, a sea, or an ocean. At the river mouth, sediments are often deposited due to the slowing of the current, reducing the carryin ...
at
Newark Bay
Newark Bay is a tidal bay at the confluence of the Passaic and Hackensack Rivers in northeastern New Jersey. It is home to the Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal, the largest container shipping facility in Port of New York and New Jerse ...
, at the
Passaic
Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city was the state's 16th-most-populous municipality,Bergen
Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo.
By May 20 ...
county line
Borders are generally defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders ...
Port of New York and New Jersey
The Port of New York and New Jersey is the port district of the New York metropolitan area, New York-Newark metropolitan area, encompassing the region within approximately a radius of the Statue of Liberty National Monument.
It includes the sy ...
, it remains partially
navigable
A body of water, such as a river, canal or lake, is navigable if it is deep, wide and calm enough for a water vessel (e.g. boats) to pass safely. Navigability is also referred to in the broader context of a body of water having sufficient under ...
for commercial
marine traffic
Maritime transport (or ocean transport) or more generally waterborne transport, is the transport of people (passengers or goods (cargo) via waterways. Freight transport by watercraft has been widely used throughout recorded history, as it provi ...
.
The original bridge had been in fixed closed position in 1977. Only bridge at MP 11.7 and those downstream from it are required by federal regulations to open.
Design and construction of first bridge
Built in 1914, the Eight Street Bridge was a Warren
pony truss
A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements, typically straight, may be stressed from tension, compression, or ...
bridge, originally a
bascule bridge
A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...
. The total length with a deck width was . The length of largest span: It followed the design of
Strauss Bascule Bridge Company
Joseph Baermann Strauss (January 9, 1870 – May 16, 1938) was a German-American structural engineer who revolutionized the design of bascule bridges. He was the chief engineer of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California.
Early life ...
of
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
and was fabricated by the F.R. Long - W.G. Broadhurst Company of Hackensack. The main span was an long is a Strauss articulated overhead counterweight single leaf bascule span. The entire bridge is supported on a concrete substructure. It originally was composed of built-up members as were the
trunnion
A trunnion () is a cylinder, cylindrical Boss (engineering), protrusion used as a mounting or pivoting point. First associated with cannons, they are an important military development.
In mechanical engineering (see the Trunnion#Trunnion bearin ...
columns, braced counterweight tower, and counterweight linkages that permitted the counterweight to pivot and move parallel to itself during operation of the bridge.
The bridge was significantly rehabilitated 1965, when a steel grid deck was installed. Between 1976 and 1979 the bridgeman's shanty was demolished and operating controls for the electric-motor powered span were removed and the bridge was fixed in the closed position. The gear sets and shafts were left in place as was the chain-operated manual operation. The original metal sidewalk railings are intact. The 300-ton counterweight, used to open the bridge, began to crumble onto passing cars and had to be removed.
The bridge carried a two-lane road, two sidewalks, and a utility pipe from 8th Street in
Passaic
Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city was the state's 16th-most-populous municipality,Wallington. As of 2014, was used by about 6,500 vehicles per day.
The State Historic Preservation Office determined in that Eighth Street Bridge was of historical and engineering merit to be included in the
state
State most commonly refers to:
* State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory
**Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country
**Nation state, a ...
The 1914 bridge had seriously deteriorated and as of 2015 was in a state of severe disrepair and considered to be structurally deficient and
fracture critical
A fracture critical bridge is a bridge or similar span that is vulnerable to collapse of one or more spans as a result of the failure in tension of a single element. While a fracture critical design is not considered unsafe, it is subject to speci ...
. There were 13 ton, 19 ton and 30 ton weight restrictions. Plans to replace the bridge had been in place since 2012. Funding was provided by state and federal sources. Land acquisition of parcels in the vicinity of the bridge has been mired in legal
eminent domain
Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
battles have hampered replacement.
After delays of several months, the bridge was closed to traffic on July 24, 2017.
The new Eighth Street Bridge with two lanes of traffic in each direction was completed in August 2019 with the assistance of $15 million in aid from the federal government
See also
*
List of crossings of the Lower Passaic River
The Lower Passaic River in New Jersey is the section of the Passaic River below the Great Falls (Passaic River), Great Falls which flows over the Dundee Canal, Dundee Dam to the river mouth at Newark Bay in the Gateway Region, northeastern pa ...
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, structure = Crossings
, place =
Passaic River
The Passaic River ( or ) is a river, approximately long, in North Jersey, northern New Jersey. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburb ...