1890s progress

The New York Connecting Railroad (NYCR), headed by Oliver W. Barnes, was incorporated in April 1892 to build the bridge.^[3][7] Throughout the 1890s, the New York State Legislature considered various bills that would give the NYCR a franchise to construct a bridge from Long Island to the U.S. mainland, but to no avail.^[8] The NYCR planned for the bridge to carry a line from Manhattan to Brooklyn.^[9] In March 1898, U.S. representative John H. Ketcham proposed legislation to allow the NYCR to erect a bridge with two or more tracks across the Bronx Kill, Little Hell Gate, and Hell Gate waterways, connecting the Bronx (on the U.S. mainland) with Randalls Island, Wards Island, and Long Island.^[10][11] Although the federal government of the United States required that the clearance below any bridge across the East River (of which the Hell Gate was part) be 150 feet (46 m) above mean high water, the bill permitted a bridge as low as 140 feet (43 m) above mean high water.^[11]

By the beginning of 1899, the NYCR had received estimates for a bridge connecting Port Morris in the Bronx, Randalls Island, Wards Islands, and Astoria in Long Island.^[12] The 800-foot-long (240 m), 150-foot-high (46 m) bridge was to connect the New York Central Railroad and NH lines in the Bronx with the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and South Brooklyn Railway lines on Long Island.^[12][13] A state senator introduced a bill in February 1899 to incorporate the Wards Island Bridge Company to construct the bridge.^[8] The following month, the NYCR's directors held a meeting with New York Central's directors about the construction of the line.^[13] The New York Central expressed interest in the planned Hell Gate Bridge, as the railroad intended to use it for both passenger and freight traffic.^[14]

Cantilever plan

The New York State Legislature passed a bill in April 1900, authorizing the NYCR to build a bridge from the Port Morris station in the Bronx to the Bushwick Junction station in Queens,^[15] and New York governor Theodore Roosevelt signed the bill the next month.^[16][17] Alfred P. Boller drew up plans for a cantilever bridge.^[2][18] The cantilever span was to measure 1,448 feet (441 m) long, 30 feet (9.1 m) wide, and 136 feet (41 m) high; the project, including 7 miles (11 km) of approach tracks, was to cost $5.5 million.^[19] The cantilever design was selected because it was cheaper than a suspension bridge of the same length.^[20] Construction of the bridge was to have begun in September 1900 and be completed in five years.^[17][21] Merchants from Brooklyn supported the bridge, saying it would reduce the cost of delivering goods to that borough.^[22] The bridge would also enable passenger trains from upstate New York and New England to travel to New Jersey via the East River and North River tunnels.^[23][24][25] Freight traffic would still be required to use car floats, as trains would not be able to fit into the tunnels;^[25] the car-float operation would be shifted south to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, where trains would be floated across the New York Bay to Greenville, Jersey City.^[24][26]

By October 1900, grading of land for the bridge and its approach viaducts had commenced, and public hearings about the bridge were being hosted.^[19][27] Initially, the PRR did not intend to use the bridge, and the crossing was to connect with the trackage of the LIRR.^[14] After the PRR's acquisition of the LIRR in 1900, the PRR began contemplating taking control of the Hell Gate Bridge.^[28][29] Ultimately, in 1901,^[30] the PRR and NH bought the NYCR.^[28][31] This was part of a larger plan to improve rail infrastructure in the New York City area, including a "belt line" for freight (now the Fremont Secondary and Bay Ridge Branch), of which the bridge was to be a part.^[30][32][33]

Work on the belt line was about to begin by early 1902,^[31] and surveys for the proposed bridge's piers had been made by the end of the year.^[34] The PRR announced in February 1903 that it would build a double-tracked cantilever bridge, and it drew up a contract to order 30,500 short tons (27,200 long tons; 27,700 t) of steel from United States Steel.^[35] The bridge's 840-foot (260 m) central span would have been the world's longest cantilever span.^[36] The Port Chester Journal described the planned crossing as "an unusual bridge in point of engineering skill".^[33] The PRR requested a perpetual franchise for the bridge from the New York City Rapid Transit Commission that June.^[37] PRR vice president Samuel Rea requested in March 1904 that the Rapid Transit Commission approve the bridge and belt line, and charge the PRR rent, so work could commence as soon as possible.^[38] That June, the Rapid Transit Commission granted a perpetual franchise for the bridge and belt line to the NYCR.^[39][40] The connecting railroad was to pay a fee to cross the East River.^[39]

Arch plan

The PRR hired New York City bridge commissioner Gustav Lindenthal as its consulting structural engineer in 1904.^[2][18] To avoid hospitals on Wards Island, the viaduct needed to curve north immediately upon reaching Wards Island;^[41] this ruled out the original cantilever design, which required a straight "anchor span".^[42][43] Instead, Lindenthal first considered a continuous truss bridge, a suspension bridge, and a cantilever bridge across Hell Gate.^[18][44] After rejecting all three designs, Lindenthal studied designs for a spandrel arch and a cantilever arch,^[18][45] both of which would be cheaper than either the suspension or cantilever proposals.^[41] The crescent-arch design would be thicker at its crown than at either end, while the spandrel-arch design would be thicker at its ends than at the crown.^[45][46] Although the crescent-arch design required less steel, Lindenthal liked the design of the spandrel arch because it appeared sturdier and because it complemented his designs for masonry towers at either end.^[46] Ultimately, he chose a modified form of the spandrel-arch design.^[2][47] His assistant Othmar Ammann wrote that the arch design would allow the bridge to serve as a figurative portal to the Port of New York and New Jersey.^[48]

In early 1905, the PRR sent engineers and workers to make borings for the bridge's foundation in Astoria.^[49] Work on the bridge's superstructure was delayed because the New York City Board of Aldermen would not approve several aspects of the franchise,^[50] prompting an unsuccessful proposal to remove the aldermen's ability to grant franchises.^[51] Among other things, the aldermen wanted the bridge to use electric power exclusively, provide space for vehicles and pedestrians, and allow the city to add utility wires to the bridge.^[52] New York Governor Frank W. Higgins signed a bill in mid-1905, allowing the start of construction to be postponed by several months.^[53] That November, the NYCR asked the Rapid Transit Commission to renew its application for a franchise, citing delays from the Board of Aldermen. The negotiations over the franchise sometimes turned contentious,^[54] but the PRR ultimately was promised a franchise from the city in December 1906.^[55] By then, the bridge was planned to fit four tracks, though only two would be used initially.^[56] The original two-track plan had been changed after the architects found that the cost of converting a two-track bridge to four tracks would be much higher than the upfront cost of a four-track bridge.^[57]

The New York City Board of Estimate approved the NYCR's franchise in February 1907.^[58] Rea submitted plans for the arch bridge in May 1907 to the city's Municipal Art Commission.^[59] The arch would have a clear span of 1,000 feet (300 m), the longest of its kind in the world, and would carry two passenger tracks and two freight tracks. The remainder of the bridge would be a viaduct made of reinforced concrete and steel plate girders.^[59][60] The plans were drawn up by consulting engineer Gustav Lindenthal and architects Palmer and Hornbostel.^[60][61] That June, the Rapid Transit Commission voted to amend the NYCR's franchise.^[62] The franchise allowed the NYCR to construct a viaduct across Wards Island, placing the railroad in possible conflict with the New York State Hospital Commission, which had leased the island from the city,^[63] although the hospital commission ultimately did allow engineers to survey the island.^[64] The Municipal Art Commission rejected the original bridge plans in July 1907 as "not artistic".^[65]

Land acquisition and finalization of plans

During the late 1900s, the NH and PRR acquired land for the bridge's right-of-way.^[66] The first house in the bridge's right-of-way was relocated at the beginning of 1908.^[67] The Pennsylvania Railroad announced in December 1908 that, as soon as Pennsylvania Station in Manhattan was completed, the railroad would begin constructing the bridge.^[68][69] The bridge was to cost up to $20 million.^[69] By early 1909, the NH had acquired all of the necessary land for the Bronx approach, while the PRR was still acquiring land in Queens for both the passenger and freight lines.^[66] The PRR agreed to buy the last piece of land for the Queens approach that July,^[70] at which point the cost of the bridge had increased to $25 million.^[71] The NYCR's engineers prepared new plans for the main span's piers the same year.^[72] That December, the PRR and NH agreed to share the cost of the bridge's construction.^[73] The Hell Gate Bridge was to be the fifth bridge across the East River (after the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg, and Queensboro bridges), as well as the first built by a private company rather than the city government.^[74]

By early 1910, the plans for the arch's piers were being revised,^[75] and surveyors were studying the route of the bridge and its approaches.^[76] The plans for the steelwork were revised the same year to accommodate a heavier type of trackbed.^[77] The PRR, NH, and LIRR were concurrently finalizing contracts for the construction of the NYCR line, which had commenced in mid-1910.^[78] The revised plans for the main span were not submitted to the Municipal Art Commission until early 1911,^[79] and a contract for the bridge's steel had still not been awarded.^[80] The PRR took title to the last remaining land lots in Queens in June 1911.^[81] By the end of the year, the designs for the Bronx Kill and Little Hell Gate spans were still being revised,^[82] and land condemnation for the bridge was nearly finished.^[83] Lindenthal estimated in late 1911 that the bridge would cost $18 million and be completed in 1914.^[84][85] The Municipal Art Commission ultimately approved the revised plans.^[86]

Initial contracts

Excavations for the Astoria end of the main span, across Hell Gate, commenced in March 1911,^[79][87] and were nearly completed by the end of the year.^[83] The American Bridge Company received a contract for the steelwork on the Hell Gate span, Wards Island viaduct, and Queens approach viaduct,^[88] while the McClintic-Marshall Company was hired to manufacture steel for the other parts of the bridge.^[89] The Carnegie Steel Company was hired in early 1912 to roll the steel plates for the bridge.^[90] Later that year, Patrick Ryan, the Manhattan Bridge's main contractor, received a $2 million contract to build the bridge's foundation,^[91] while John A. Gray received a contract to take soil samples for the bridge.^[92] Masonry contracts were awarded to Patrick Ryan (who partnered with U.S. Realty to build the Hell Gate spans' towers^[93]), as well as Arthur McMullin and T. A. Gillespie.^[94] Harold W. Hudson was the chief construction engineer.^[95]

Work formally commenced on the Bronx and Queens approach viaducts in July 1912, and work on the foundations of the main span's towers began that September,^[94][96] though no above-ground work had commenced.^[97] By October 1912, workers were preparing to lower caissons for the main span's Wards Island tower,^[98] as the underlying layer of rock was over one hundred feet (30 m) deep and was covered by layers of sand, coarse gravel, and boulders.^[99] Twenty-one caissons were used to excavate the Wards Island tower's foundation.^[99][100] The caissons were larger and deeper than those used in the construction of the tallest buildings in New York City at the time.^[101] The caisson-sinking process was further complicated by the discovery of a diagonal fissure in the underlying rock.^[101][102] It ultimately took seven months to sink the caissons and ensure that the tower would not be susceptible to settlement.^[101]

In November 1912, a New York Supreme Court justice enjoined the contractors from erecting abutments on Wards Island.^[103][64] The operators of the Manhattan Psychiatric Center claimed that patients would be disturbed by loud noises, both during construction and after the bridge opened,^[64] but the city government claimed that the hospital's lease of the island had expired.^[104] The injunction was lifted in January 1913,^[105] when the State Supreme Court ruled that the law permitting the bridge's construction overrode the law that restricted railroads above the grounds of a hospital.^[86]

Pier construction

The construction of piers on Randalls and Wards Islands and in Queens began in February 1913.^[94] Derricks were used to construct the concrete piers under the Bronx Kill, Randalls Island, Little Hell Gate, and Wards Island spans. The foundations of the Bronx Kill span's piers were constructed using caissons, since the underlying layer of rock was nearly 100 feet (30 m) deep.^[101] The foundations of the Little Hell Gate span's piers were built in open cofferdams due to the shallowness of that strait.^[106] The contractor built a dock on Wards Island to load and unload material. Derricks carried solid materials from the dock to a conveyor belts, which in turn led to covered storage bins, while cement was poured down a chute to a cement house next to the storage bins. Sand, stone, and cement from the bins were dumped into "charging cars" and carried to a mixing plant, where the material was mixed into concrete.^[42] Elevators were used to transport concrete to the top of each pier.^[96][86]

By July 1913, some of the piers and retaining walls for the Bronx and Queens viaducts had been constructed, and contractors had installed temporary plants on Randalls and Wards Islands.^[96][107] The next month, the PRR and NH announced that the NYCR would issue a $30 million mortgage and $11 million in bonds to fund the construction of the Hell Gate Bridge and associated lines;^[108] the railroads had spent $8.6 million to date on the bridge.^[109] The bonds were issued later that year.^[110] During a site visit in mid-1914, a local civic group noted that a temporary span had been finished across Bronx Kill and that piers were being built within the riverbed of Little Hell Gate.^[111] The main span's towers had reached the height of the deck by the end of 1914, while almost all of the other piers had been completed by then.^[112]

Steelwork and completion

Steel girders and plates for the Little Hell Gate and Bronx Kill spans were being installed by late 1914.^[112] The girders under the two center tracks were installed first. Afterward, the center tracks were laid, and a derrick car and a locomotive crane were placed on opposite spans. The derrick car delivered girders that had already been riveted together, and the locomotive crane installed the girders for the outer tracks.^[113] The arched main span above Hell Gate was technically challenging because Hell Gate was a navigable waterway, and the arch could not be constructed using falsework.^[42][44] Consequently, massive temporary backstays were built behind both of the Hell Gate towers to cantilever the two pieces of the arch.^{[101][114][115]} To accommodate the backstays, the tops of the towers and some adjacent piers could not be completed until after the Hell Gate span was finished.^[114][116] After the backstays were constructed, movable derricks were installed atop the backstays.^[117]

One thousand workers and 40 engineers began installing the steelwork of the arch in November 1914;^[118] many of the laborers were Mohawk Native American ironworkers from Quebec and upstate New York.^[119] Work proceeded in two sections from either shore toward the middle of Hell Gate.^[118][120] The main span consisted of 23 panels,^[118] which were installed by the derricks atop the backstays.^[117] The panels were composed of steel pieces that weighed as much as 185 short tons (165 long tons; 168 t).^[43][121] The steel pieces were manufactured off-site^[102] and, at the time, were among the heaviest steel pieces ever manufactured.^[122] Each piece was delivered to the site via car floats, then transported up via derricks.^[117] To counteract sagging caused by the weight of the panels, both halves of the bridge occasionally had to be adjusted.^[101] The project as a whole was declared half-finished in July 1915.^[118] The last pieces of the lower chord were installed during the week of September 28 to October 4, 1915,^[123][124] and both halves were officially joined on October 1.^[102][125] The gap between the two parts of the arch was just 5⁄16 inch (7.9 mm).^[102][123] The extreme precision was attributed to the level of detail in the engineering drawings,^[116] as well as the use of highly precise surveying tools made by the W. & L. E. Gurley Company.^[126]

The completion of the arch made the Hell Gate span the longest steel arch in the world.^[125][120] The hydraulic jacks were removed from the towers,^[122] and the backstays were disassembled and reused in the approach viaducts.^[115][123] Workers began driving 400,000 rivets into the arched span;^[123] Lindenthal claimed that they were among the largest rivets ever used.^[102] Due to cold weather, the upper chord of the arch could not be riveted together until May 1916.^[102] Locomotive cranes constructed the remaining portions of the viaducts.^[2] By mid-October 1916, the PRR and NH anticipated that passenger service would commence at the beginning of 1917.^[127] Finishing touches were placed on the bridge during late 1916.^[128] In total, the bridge cost $18.5 million.^[129] Before the bridge's official opening, police forces patrolled it to prevent sabotage during World War I.^[130]

Arch and deck

The main span measures 1,017 feet (310 m) long between the outer faces of the masonry "towers" on either side of Hell Gate.^{[5][233][274]} The clear span (between the inner faces) is 977.5 feet (297.9 m),^[233][263] while the distance between the centers of these towers is 995 feet (303 m).^[274] At the center of the main span, the deck reaches its maximum height, 145 feet (44 m) above mean high water,^[269] with a clearance below of 135 feet (41 m).^[99][258] The main span was intended to carry a total load of approximately 76,000 pounds per lineal foot, or 113,000 kilograms per lineal meter.^[263] The span uses high-carbon steel because it was cheaper than nickel steel at the time of construction.^[275] In total, the main span required between 18,000 and 20,000 short tons (16,000 and 18,000 t) of rolled steel.^[2][43][270]

The span is a two-hinged arch; there are hinges at the springing points of the arch (at the bases of the towers on either side of Hell Gate).^{[2][117][263]} The arch's beams run along the north and south sides of a 60-foot-wide (18 m) deck.^[42][276] On either side of the deck is an upper chord, with an inverted U-shaped cross section, and a lower chord, with a box-shaped cross section.^[277] The two chords are 140 feet (43 m) apart at either shore of Hell Gate, narrowing to 40 feet (12 m) apart at the middle of the river.^[42][276] Each lower chord ranges in thickness from approximately 7 to 11 feet (2.1 to 3.4 m),^[263][277] and the thickest sections of the lower chord are divided into two compartments.^[101][121] The upper chord is thinner and functions like a stiffening truss.^[263] The upper chord is shaped like a hump,^[47][86] both for structural reinforcement and for esthetic purposes.^[47] It reaches a maximum height of 300 feet (91 m)^[278] or 305 feet (93 m) above mean high water.^{[2][274][279]} Beams run vertically and diagonally between the upper and lower chords.^[117][276] There is also transverse bracing between the upper chords and lower chords on either side of the bridge.^[280]

Eight stringers run parallel to, and under, the tracks for the entire length of the deck. Four additional stringers were intended to support unbuilt walkways or trolley tracks on either side.^[121][280] These are intersected by 24 transverse floor beams. Sixteen of the transverse beams are suspended from the lower chord, while the other eight beams are riveted to the vertical trusses between the lower and upper chords.^[121] Additional girders are used to stabilize the floor of the deck.^[281]

Towers

Hornbostel was responsible for the towers on either shore of Hell Gate, which were designed to resemble castle keeps.^[2] They measure 220 feet (67 m) high and are made of concrete; the towers are clad with Maine granite above ground level.^[99] At the bases of each tower are two 500,000-pound (230,000 kg) cast-steel hinges, one for each of the lower chords.^[102] The Queens tower sits atop a layer of rock 20 feet (6.1 m) below the ground.^[99][86] The layer of rock under the Wards Island tower is substantially deeper, descending more than 100 feet (30 m), and sits atop a deep caisson foundation.^[100][99] At ground level, the towers have a cross section of 104 by 140 feet (32 by 43 m).^[100][96] Each tower has a "shoulder", upon which the lower chords rest, and the towers' dimensions shrink above this shoulder.^[86]

The upper portions of each tower are hollow and contain staircases.^[233][282] Steel girders inside the towers support the tracks,^[282] but the towers are otherwise largely ornamental.^[233] The upper section of each tower contains archways on all four sides. There are also loophole-like openings flanking the tracks. The tops of the towers are surrounded by parapets.^[2][282] Space for railroad equipment, such as switch tower machinery, was provided on the roof of each tower.^[256]

Little Hell Gate Bridge

Between the Randalls and Wards Islands viaducts is the Little Hell Gate Bridge, an inverted bowstring truss bridge.^[284][285] The inverted bowstring truss span is 1,154 feet (352 m) long, as measured from the centers of the abutments on either side.^[5][283] The Little Hell Gate Bridge consists of four sections of nearly equal length, although two are slightly longer than the others.^[284] Each section is composed of linked eye bars measuring 16 inches (410 mm) wide.^[102]

The bridge is supported by three piers, which are skewed because they follow the former course of Little Hell Gate. Each pier is composed of a reinforced concrete arch held up by two circular columns. The portion of each pier below the former strait's water level is made of granite.^[106] Because Little Hell Gate was never a navigable waterway, the United States Department of War had allowed the builders to construct the piers within the strait itself.^[283] Little Hell Gate was infilled in the 1960s.^[286]

Bronx viaduct

In the Bronx, the Hell Gate Bridge has an approach viaduct measuring 4,356 feet (1,328 m) long^[269] and descends at a grade of up to 1.2 percent.^[269][258] The NH used helper locomotives during the 20th century to assist freight trains traversing the approach viaduct's grade.^[184][288] The Bronx viaduct merges with the former four-track Port Morris Branch (now the one-track Oak Point Link) at 142nd Street in Port Morris.^[284][289] Separate ramps carry the western and eastern pairs of tracks down to the level of the Port Morris Branch.^[284] As built, the western ramp descended between the Port Morris Branch's western and eastern pairs of tracks, while the eastern ramp descended to the east of the Port Morris Branch.^[260][284] Two sets of piers carry the ramps northward from the Bronx Kill span to 132nd Street.^[86]

From the Bronx Kill north to 132nd Street, the four-track-wide viaduct consists of plate girders, which rest on concrete piers. Each pier is less than 50 feet (15 m) tall and has an arched opening at the base.^[284] The Hell Gate Pathway runs underneath the arches.^[287] The viaduct splits into two ramps north of 132nd Street, each with space for two tracks.^[284] Between 132nd and 138th Street, the ramps are largely supported by rectangular concrete piers.^[284] The plate girders run parallel to each other, under the tracks, and are intersected perpendicularly by I-beams, which support the concrete-and-ballast trackbeds above.^[290] The western ramp crosses over the Port Morris Branch's former eastern pair of tracks from 132nd to 133rd Street and is supported by large steel cross-girders.^[290] Between 138th and 142nd streets, the line is carried on an embankment measuring 900 feet (270 m) long.^[284]

Queens viaduct

The Queens approach viaduct descends at a grade of no more than 0.72 percent and is carried over local streets.^[269][258] It ranges from 110 to 30 feet (33.5 to 9.1 m) above ground.^[258] The section west of 29th Street measures 2,868 feet (874 m) long and was originally known as the Long Island viaduct.^[117] The western viaduct is very similar to those above Randalls and Wards Islands, but the piers of the use shallow foundations due to the presence of gravel and sand under the viaduct. The gravel and sand could not accommodate loads of more than 3 short tons per square foot (29 t/m²), so the Queens viaduct is supported by especially wide concrete piers.^[99]

The section from 29th to 44th Street^{[lower-alpha 4]} measures 3,480 feet (1,060 m) long and was originally called the eastern viaduct.^[258] Reinforced concrete round arches carry the line over several streets in Astoria.^[99][112] The approach viaduct crosses above the New York City Subway's elevated Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard station at 31st Street,^[293] and three-centered arches were used at two locations where a flatter arch was required.^[112][291] Warren truss bridges carry the line diagonally above intersections.^[100][294] The truss-bridge segments typically measure 120 to 166 feet (37 to 51 m) long^[99][112] and consist of heavy box-section columns that are made of built-up I-beams.^[294] Along the remainder of the eastern viaduct, the tracks run atop compacted land fill, which is enclosed by retaining walls. The retaining walls are made of slabs that are bolted together, while the fill came from the excavation of Sunnyside Yard.^[295]

East of 44th Street, the viaduct ends, and the line descends onto an embankment.^[258][291] The passenger and freight tracks branch off in western Queens, past the end of the viaduct.^[57]

Passenger rail

The bridge's two western tracks are part of the Hell Gate Line and are used for Acela Express and Northeast Regional service between New York and Boston.^[266] The speed limit for passenger trains is 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) on the bridge itself and 60 miles per hour (97 km/h) on the approach viaducts.^[233] Past the bridge, the Hell Gate Line continues north to New Rochelle, where it merges with the mainline portion of Metro-North Railroad's New Haven Line, and south to Harold Interlocking, where it merges with the Long Island Rail Road's Main Line.^[299] The bridge has traditionally been used by long-distance trains.^[202] It has also hosted occasional commuter services, such as special Metro-North services from Connecticut to the Meadowlands station in New Jersey.^[300][198] Before the opening of the Empire Connection in 1991,^[301] all Amtrak trains traveling from New York Penn Station to upstate New York and New England had to use the bridge.^[302]

In 1962, a regional transportation committee proposed running commuter rail trains from Connecticut to New York Penn Station via the Hell Gate Bridge,^[202] in advance of the 1964 New York World's Fair.^[303] The proposal was again studied in 1969^[304] and 1973,^[203] but the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) initially dismissed the commuter-rail plan as infeasible.^[305] A plan to run some New Haven Line trains over the bridge was again proposed in the 1990s;^[306] the main obstacle to the plan was a lack of track space at Penn Station.^[238] The MTA studied the plan in 2000s as part of the Penn Station Access project, along with new stations on the Hell Gate Line in the Bronx.^[307][308] Amtrak and the MTA reached an agreement regarding track usage rights in 2019,^[309][310] and construction on Penn Station Access commenced in 2022, after the completion of East Side Access freed up space at Penn Station.^[311] As of 2023^[update], New Haven Line trains were expected to begin running to Penn Station in 2028.^[312]

There have been proposals for the bridge to carry rapid transit as well. In 1950 and again in 1954, Bronx borough president James J. Lyons proposed running a subway line between Manhattan and the Bronx via the bridge.^[313] The Triboro RX subway line, between the Bronx and Brooklyn, was proposed in the 1990s and would have used the Hell Gate Bridge.^[314] The Triboro RX plan was scaled down after the MTA determined that it would not be feasible to operate rapid transit on the bridge when Penn Station Access was finished.^[312][314]

Freight rail

On the eastern side of the bridge is the New York Connecting Railroad's single-track line, which links New York City and Long Island to the North American mainland.^[233] The track forms part of the Fremont Secondary. It carries trains of the CSX, Canadian Pacific, and Providence & Worcester railroads from Oak Point Yard in the Bronx to Fresh Pond Yard in Queens,^[233][296] where they connect with the New York and Atlantic Railway to Long Island.^[315] Another track was abandoned in the 1970s^[198] and totally removed in the late 1990s.^[233] The speed limit for freight trains is 10 miles per hour (16 km/h).^[233]