The National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) is proposing to replace Amtrak Bridges No. 7.80 and No. 7.96, collectively referred to as the “Sawtooth Bridges,” which are critical links and existing bottlenecks on the Northeast Corridor (NEC), one of the busiest transportation corridors in the world. The Sawtooth Bridges are in the towns of Harrison and Kearny, Hudson County, NJ, between Newark Penn Station and Secaucus Junction (see Figure 1-1, EA Chapters 1 and 2), and do not cross any bodies of water but span other rail tracks. The bridges are steel viaduct structures constructed in 1907 as part of the Pennsylvania Railroad system and have been in service for 117 years. Amtrak Bridge No. 7.80 carries two NEC tracks over four New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJ Transit) commuter rail tracks that serve the NJ Transit Morris & Essex Line. A mtrak Bridge No. 7.96 carries two NEC tracks over one Port Authority Trans-Hudson Corporation (PATH) Newark–World Trade Center (WTC) commuter rail track and one Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail) freight rail track.

The age of the Sawtooth Bridges, their poor structural condition, and their two tracks (which restrict train speed to 60 miles per hour) limit the efficiency and reliability of rail operations throughout this segment of the NEC. The purpose of the Sawtooth Bridges Replacement Project (Project) is to achieve a state of good repair and improve the reliability and resiliency of rail service along this critical segment of the NEC.

Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and Amtrak, using congressionally-directed annual grant funding, prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Project in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA); FRA’s Procedures for Considering Environmental Impacts (64 Federal Register [FR] 28545 [May 26, 1999] and 78 FR 2713 [January 14, 2013]); Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended; Section 4(f) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Act of 1966; Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations; and other applicable federal statutes, rules, and regulations.

FRA signed the EA on February 27, 2020, and the 30-day public comment period ran from March 5 to April 4, 2020. On August 27, 2020, FRA signed a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). The FONSI addressed the public comments and included measures to minimize impacts that will be implemented with the project.

The EA and FONSI for the Project can be accessed via the links below.  

• EA Cover page, table of contents, acronym list
• EA Chapters 1 and 2
• EA Chapter 3
• EA Chapters 4–6
• Appendix 1
• Appendix 2
• Appendix 3–A–1–3
• Appendix 3–A–4
• Appendix 3–A–5 (Part 1)
• Appendix 3–A–5 (Part 2)
• Appendix 4
• Finding of No Significant Impact 

Since the EA/FONSI, Amtrak has received discretionary grant funding under FRA’s Federal-State Partnership Grant Program for project development and early construction activities. As Amtrak advances the Project’s design, FRA will perform NEPA re-evaluations as necessary to address any changes in the project scope and/or the environmental setting and/or environmental impacts.

FRA Points of Contact

If you have questions related to the project, please contact Monica Zabroski, FRA Environmental Protection Specialist, at Monica.Zabroski@dot.gov or:

Media Queries Contact:
Phone: 202-493-6024
Email: FRAPA@dot.gov