(The following article by David A. Michaels was posted on the Bergen Record website on July 26.)
BERGEN, N.J. — NJ Transit canceled 22 trains Tuesday after a swing bridge that spans the Hackensack River in Secaucus would not close, officials said.
Two NJ Transit trains were delayed for 90 minutes, and the average delay was about 45 minutes, a spokeswoman said.
The Portal Bridge, owned by Amtrak, became stuck as operators tried to open it about 3:30 p.m., Amtrak spokesman Cliff Black said. Amtrak workers manually closed the bridge at about 4:50 p.m., Black said.
Amtrak is investigating the bridge’s failure but did not disclose any cause Tuesday.
NJ Transit is considering expanding the 95-year-old bridge, which is on a heavily traveled section of the Northeast Corridor. A fire damaged the bridge last year.