WR Draw

WR Draw
View from North Newark to West Arlington
Coordinates40°46′36″N 74°09′00″W / 40.7766256°N 74.1500386°W / 40.7766256; -74.1500386
CarriesNew York and Greenwood Lake Railway (1897-1966)
Boonton Line (1963-2002)
CrossesPassaic River
LocaleNewark and Kearny,
New Jersey
Other name(s)West Arlington Drawbridge,[1]
Bridge 7.57[2]
OwnerNew Jersey Transit
Preceded byMidland Bridge[3]
Characteristics
DesignSwing bridge
Clearance above40 feet (12 m)[4]
History
Opened1897[2]
Closed2002
Location
Map

WR Draw is an out-of-service railroad bridge crossing the Passaic River between Newark and the Arlington section of Kearny, New Jersey. The plate girder rim-bearing swing bridge, originally built in 1897 and modified in 1911 and 1950,[2] is the 14th bridge from the river's mouth at Newark Bay and is 8.1 miles (13.0 km) upstream from it.[4] Last used for regular passenger service in 2002, it is welded in closed position as its height is not considered a hazard to navigation.[4]

The lower seventeen miles (27 km) of the ninety-mile (140 km) long Passaic River downstream of the Dundee Dam is tidally influenced and navigable.[4] Rail service across the river was generally oriented to bringing passengers and freight from the points west over the Hackensack Meadows to Bergen Hill, where tunnels and cuts provided access terminals on the Hudson River.

  1. ^ Title 33 Code of Federal Regulations Sec. 117.739(j)
  2. ^ a b c Solomon, Brian (2008), North American Railroad Bridges, Voyageur Press, ISBN 9781610604581, archived from the original on October 9, 2023, retrieved May 13, 2021
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference rowing was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b c d "Lower Passaic River Restoration Project Commercial Navigation Analysis" (PDF). United States Army Corps of Engineers. July 2, 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 19, 2015. Retrieved March 19, 2012.