NY: New N.J. train bridge opens before schedule after power issue shuts old one

New Jersey commuters got to ride the newly constructed Portal North Bridge days ahead of schedule on Friday — after damaged power lines unexpectedly shut down the track that NJ Transit and Amtrak trains have been using all month.

Several of the poles that hold overhead power lines above the tracks of the century-old Portal Bridge — which carries the Northeast Corridor line of Amtrak and NJ Transit over the Hackensack River in the Meadowlands — were found to be bent early Friday morning, an Amtrak spokesman told the Daily News.

The bent poles kept trains from making consistent contact with the power lines. As a result, around 5:45 a.m., service was moved over to the bridge’s newly built replacement, the Portal North Bridge.

Service between Newark and New York City typically operates on two tracks — one eastbound and one westbound — running through the Meadowlands. For the past four weeks, as crews have worked to connect the new Portal North Bridge to the rail line, service has been traveling along just one track of the old bridge in both directions.

Full service is still set to be restored on Sunday — when the new Portal North Bridge had originally been scheduled to open — with westbound trains using the new bridge and eastbound trains continuing to use the old bridge.

NJ Transit and Amtrak both confirmed that service Friday was now operating on one track in both directions on the new bridge, while repairs are made on the old one.

“We are currently working with our partners at NJ TRANSIT to make the necessary catenary pole repairs on the old Portal Bridge,” read a statement shared by Amtrak spokesman Jason Abrams. “We apologize to both (groups) of our customers for the inconvenience, which just goes to show the importance of the new bridge and not having to rely on 116-year-old infrastructure.”

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