For the second time in six days, thousands of Amtrak riders were delayed or left stranded as problems were reported at the Spuyten Duyvil Railroad Bridge that connects The Bronx with Inwood in Manhattan, carrying trains over the Spuyten Duyvil Creek, where the Creek meets the Hudson River.

 

In the latest incident, the bridge which opens up to allow boats traveling along the Harlem River into the Spuyten Duyvil Creek to access the Hudson River and visa versa, was stuck in the open position for nearly three hours on Friday, April 26.

 

When contacted, Jason Abrams, a public relations manager at Amtrak, said, “There was a mechanical issue that left the bridge in the open position, as it was unable to close.” Abrams continued, “Crews were able to slowly close and lock the bridge in place.”

 

Abrams told Norwood News that trains were delayed by between 8 minutes and 3 hours. He added, “One train wound up terminating in Poughkeepsie and another in Yonkers.” The malfunction was reported at just before 11 a.m. and the issue was resolved by 2 p.m.

When Norwood News asked Abrams about an earlier second incident reportedly involving a boat crash at the bridge, he replied, “On [Saturday] April 20, a 15-foot fishing boat struck the base of the bridge. All train and marine traffic was put on hold until the bridge was inspected and cleared. There was no damage to the bridge.”

 

Abrams added that train delays relating to the boat accident ranged from between 38 minutes and “less than 2 hours.”

 

As the bridge was stuck in the open position on April 26, a female resident walking along Palisade Avenue by Half Moon Overlook park, pointed to a barge and crane stationed beside the bridge and said, “They were lucky the crane was already there so they can work on it.”

The resident added, “The crane and the barge and all that stuff has been there a few weeks.” When told of the problem and delay, the woman responded, “Oh really? Oh well, my wife took it this morning. Hopefully it’ll be okay this evening.”

 

When a second female resident standing with a group of other residents was told of the earlier April 20th incident, she asked, “What happened? A ship hit it?” She added, “That’s the first time I’m hearing that.”

The “turntable” Spuyten Duyvil Railroad Bridge was built in 1900, and was recommissioned in 1991 when the “West Side Connection” began service, transporting passengers from Manhattan along the Hudson River. It terminates in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

 

The Spuyten Duyvil Bridge is used by Amtrak to reach Penn Station. According to Amtrak, approximately 500,000 passengers a day pass through New York Penn Station, which serves the Long Island Rail Road, New Jersey Transit, and Amtrak intercity trains. Together, these agencies operate over 1,000 weekday trains at Penn Station.

 

According to Amtrak, the Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Adirondack, Maple Leaf and Lake Shore Limited Amtrak services all use the Spuyten Duyvil Rail Bridge. An Amtrak spokesperson said, “In Financial Year 2023, those trains had a combined ridership of 2,161,566 regardless of origin or destination. Amtrak doesn’t stop at the nearby Spuyten Duyvil Station.”

 

In other Amtrak news, its representatives said it has recently added more departures for weekday roundtrips and weekend services to its Northeast Regional service.

 

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to clarify that the referenced delays involved the Amtrak service, rather than the Metro-North service. We apologize for the error.