Editing Hell Gate Bridge (section)

=== 1970s to 1990s ===
[[File:Hell_Gate_Bridge-_I._Central_Steel_Arch_over_East_River_looking_toward_west_from_Astoria_Park,_Queens,_Queens_(NYPL_b13668355-482577).jpg|alt=Grayscale image of the main span as seen from immediately beside it, within Astoria Park. Trees in foreground of bridge in bloom, Triborough Bridge and Manhattan visible beyond.|thumb|The main span as seen from immediately beside it, within [[Astoria Park]]]]
The New Jersey car float was closed for an extended period during the 1970s, making the Hell Gate Bridge the only way for freight trains to get to and from Long Island during that time.<ref name="p123076962">{{cite news |last=Burks |first=Edward C. |date=November 5, 1976 |title=Rail-Car Floating: a Chancy Business |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |page=28 |id={{ProQuest|123076962}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |last=Morris |first=Tom |date=October 18, 1978 |title=Piggyback Freight Center Eyed |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-suffolk-edition-piggyback-frei/142902558/ |access-date=March 7, 2024 |work=Newsday |pages=7, 28 |archive-date=March 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307233942/https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-suffolk-edition-piggyback-frei/142902558/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="p964853600">{{cite news |last=Morris |first=Tom |date=October 18, 1978 |title=Rail Freight Revival for City |work=Newsday |page= |pages=19, 23 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|964853600}}}}</ref> One of the bridge's freight tracks was abandoned during that decade as well.<ref name="Healy 2016 i391" /> The lack of rail crossings of the [[Hudson River]], to the west, also meant that freight trains from Long Island had to [[Selkirk hurdle|detour to upstate New York]] just to travel west or south.<ref name="p964853600" /> Freight trains from the west also had to make several tight turns to reach the Hell Gate Bridge.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Halbfinger |first=David M. |date=October 12, 1998 |title=20 Years in the Making, Rail Freight Link Opens in Bronx |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/10/12/nyregion/20-years-in-the-making-rail-freight-link-opens-in-bronx.html |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=February 26, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240226004610/https://www.nytimes.com/1998/10/12/nyregion/20-years-in-the-making-rail-freight-link-opens-in-bronx.html |url-status=live}}</ref> New York state voters approved a bond issue in 1974, which provided $250 million{{efn-lr|About ${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|start_year=1974|value=250|fmt=c}} million in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}{{Inflation/fn|US-GDP|group=lower-alpha}}}} for numerous upgrades to New York City's railroads.<ref name="nyt-1974-11-07">{{Cite news |last=Burks |first=Edward C. |date=November 7, 1974 |title=State Rail Bond Issue Is Expected to First Help Commuter and Intercity Service |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1974/11/07/archives/state-rail-bond-issue-is-expected-to-first-help-commuter-and.html |access-date=March 7, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=March 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307233729/https://www.nytimes.com/1974/11/07/archives/state-rail-bond-issue-is-expected-to-first-help-commuter-and.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The upgrades included modifications to allow [[Double-stack rail transport|double-stack]] freight trains to use the Hell Gate Bridge, thereby reducing the need for cargo trucks to travel through the city.<ref name="nyt-1974-11-07" /><ref name="n142901870">{{Cite news |last=Henry |first=John |date=March 9, 1975 |title=City Taking Steps to Revive Rail Freight Service |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-city-taking-steps-to-revive-r/142901870/ |access-date=March 7, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=99 |archive-date=March 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307233700/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-city-taking-steps-to-revive-r/142901870/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Amtrak]] took over the bridge itself, and the passenger services that used it, by 1975,<ref name="n142901274">{{Cite news |last=Oreskes |first=Michael |date=June 19, 1975 |title=Crushed Car Brings Outcry on Dangers of Bridge |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-crushed-car-brings-outcry-on/142901274/ |access-date=March 7, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=313 |archive-date=March 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307233720/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-crushed-car-brings-outcry-on/142901274/ |url-status=live}}</ref> while Conrail began operating additional freight trains over it during the same decade.<ref name="nyt-1976-04-04">{{Cite news |last=Burks |first=Edward C. |date=April 4, 1976 |title=Waiting for the ConRail Express |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/04/04/archives/long-island-weekly-waiting-for-the-conrail-express.html |access-date=March 7, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=March 7, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307233657/https://www.nytimes.com/1976/04/04/archives/long-island-weekly-waiting-for-the-conrail-express.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Healy 2016 i391" /> Vandals frequently threw rocks from the bridge and set fires, which had prompted Penn Central, and later Amtrak, to increase security on the bridge.<ref name="n142901274" /> By the late 1970s, debris was falling from the approach viaducts.<ref name="n142906312" /><ref name="p278274630">{{cite news |date=May 22, 1990 |title=Queens Closeup / Manhattan Closeup Amtrak: Hell Gate Not Falling Down 73-year-old Bridge is Rusted but Safe, Rail Officials Say |work=Newsday |page=23 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278274630}}}}</ref> Due to poor drainage, water had seeped through the viaducts, causing rocks to come loose.<ref name="n142909141">{{Cite news |last=Murray |first=Alice |date=May 23, 1980 |title=Hell Gate Viaduct: Relief is in sight |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-hell-gate-viaduct-relief-is/142909141/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=897 |archive-date=April 4, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240404034652/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-hell-gate-viaduct-relief-is/142909141/ |url-status=live }}</ref> City councilman [[Peter Vallone Sr.]] and U.S. representative [[Mario Biaggi]] advocated for Amtrak to repair the viaducts, saying the conditions threatened local residents' lives.<ref name="n142909141" /> Amtrak started repairing the viaducts in 1978 but paused the repairs the next year.<ref name="n142906827">{{Cite news |last=Leahy |first=Jack |date=August 28, 1979 |title=Vallone: Fix viaduct before it kills |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-vallone-fix-viaduct-before-i/142906827/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=370 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011304/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-vallone-fix-viaduct-before-i/142906827/ |url-status=live}}</ref> When the project resumed in 1980,<ref name="n142908484">{{Cite news |last=Hanrahan |first=Thomas |date=February 12, 1980 |title=Hell Gate viaduct imperiling cleanup |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-hell-gate-viaduct-imperiling/142908484/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=386 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011310/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-hell-gate-viaduct-imperiling/142908484/ |url-status=live}}</ref> workers added welded steel plates on the trackbeds to prevent objects from falling.<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 30, 1980 |title=All's well that ends weld |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-alls-well-that-ends-weld/142908000/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=750 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011308/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-alls-well-that-ends-weld/142908000/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Even after the repairs were finished, local residents continued to express concerns about the viaduct's structural integrity.<ref name="n142908086">{{Cite news |last1=Rabin |first1=Bernard |last2=Meskil |first2=Paul |date=July 25, 1984 |title=Fear death from above |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-fear-death-from-above/142908086/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=287 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011316/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-fear-death-from-above/142908086/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="n142911299">{{Cite news |last=Jamieson |first=Wendell |date=July 7, 1988 |title=Debris From Bridge Still Falls on Astoria |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-debris-from-bridge-still-falls-o/142911299/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=Newsday |pages=33 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011923/https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-debris-from-bridge-still-falls-o/142911299/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Additionally, the bridge's paint was peeling off by the late 1980s.<ref name="NYT-Kilgannon" /><ref name="n142910354">{{Cite news |last=Peters |first=James |date=June 20, 1988 |title=Vallone urges RRs to fix-up Hell Gate Bridge |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-vallone-urges-rrs-to-fix-up-h/142910354/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=302 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011328/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-vallone-urges-rrs-to-fix-up-h/142910354/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Sources disagree on whether the bridge had last been repainted in 1939<ref name="n142910926" /> or whether it had never been repainted at all;<ref name="n142911299" /><ref name="n142910354" /> in either case, Amtrak's own vice president said the bridge should have been repainted three times in the previous half-century.<ref name="n142910926">{{Cite news |date=November 2, 1988 |title=Meeting to Discuss the Fate of Hell Gate Bridge |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-meeting-to-discuss-the-fate-of-h/142910926/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=Newsday |pages=34 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011324/https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-meeting-to-discuss-the-fate-of-h/142910926/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Vallone asked the federal government to fix the bridge after falling debris broke a car's window in 1988.<ref name="p278274630" /> Vallone and U.S. senator [[Daniel Patrick Moynihan]] requested that Amtrak devise a plan for repairing the bridge,<ref name="nyt-1988-09-11">{{Cite news |date=September 11, 1988 |title=Queens Rail Bridge Criticized |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/11/nyregion/queens-rail-bridge-criticized.html |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |postscript=none |agency=The Associated Press |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011303/https://www.nytimes.com/1988/09/11/nyregion/queens-rail-bridge-criticized.html |url-status=live}}; {{Cite news |date=September 11, 1988 |title=Hell Gate's in heck of fix |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-hell-gates-in-heck-of-fix/142910475/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=5 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011330/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-hell-gates-in-heck-of-fix/142910475/ |url-status=live}}</ref> though Amtrak officials denied that there was deterioration.<ref name="n142910926" /><ref name="n142910708">{{Cite news |last=Peters |first=James |date=July 18, 1988 |title=Bridge OK, Vallone told |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-bridge-ok-vallone-told/142910708/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=221 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308011322/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-bridge-ok-vallone-told/142910708/ |url-status=live}}</ref> ''The New York Times'' described the bridge in 1991 as "a flaking and crumbling symbol of [[urban decay]] and decline".<ref name="nyt-1991-11-30">{{Cite news |last=Gruson |first=Lindsey |date=November 30, 1991 |title=Long Unlucky, Rail Bridge Hits $55 Million Repair Jackpot |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/30/nyregion/long-unlucky-rail-bridge-hits-55-million-repair-jackpot.html |access-date=March 1, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=November 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131113085635/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/30/nyregion/long-unlucky-rail-bridge-hits-55-million-repair-jackpot.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Moynihan convened a [[United States Senate]] hearing in 1990 after attempting to contact Amtrak officials about the bridge; at the hearing, Amtrak officials testified that the bridge did not need repainting.<ref name="p278274630" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=May 17, 1990 |title=They brush on painting Hell Gate Bridge |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-they-brush-on-painting-hell-g/142944883/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=486 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308180836/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-they-brush-on-painting-hell-g/142944883/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The officials also estimated the cost of repainting at $43 million,{{efn-lr|About ${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|start_year=1993|value=43|fmt=c}} million in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}{{Inflation/fn|US-GDP|group=lower-alpha}}}} though Moynihan disputed these estimates.<ref name="p278274630" /> By then, city officials had issued several warnings to pedestrians and drivers about the bridge's safety.<ref name="p278372662">{{cite news |last=Queen |first=Joseph W. |date=July 30, 1991 |title=Heads Up! Bad Bridge |work=Newsday |page=27 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278372662}}}}</ref> The [[United States Congress]] allocated $55 million to renovate the bridge in late 1991,<ref name="nyt-1991-11-30" /><ref name="p278412942">{{cite news |last=Queen |first=Joseph W. |date=December 8, 1991 |title=Queen's Queens Feds Come Through to Save a Treasure |work=Newsday |page=2 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278412942}}}}</ref> which included $42 million for repainting and $13 million for structural improvements.{{efn-lr|The total cost was about ${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|start_year=1991|value=55|fmt=c}} million in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}. Of this, ${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|start_year=1991|value=42|fmt=c}} million was for repainting, and ${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|start_year=1991|value=13|fmt=c}} million was for structural improvements.{{Inflation/fn|US-GDP|group=lower-alpha}}}}<ref name="n142945343">{{Cite news |date=February 22, 1992 |title=Work set to begin on Hell Gate bridge |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/mount-vernon-argus-work-set-to-begin-on/142945343/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=Mount Vernon Argus |pages=13 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308180811/https://www.newspapers.com/article/mount-vernon-argus-work-set-to-begin-on/142945343/ |url-status=live}}</ref> In exchange, the [[New York State Department of Transportation]] had to provide [[matching funds]] for 20 percent of the federal allocation. At the time, 20 Amtrak trains used the bridge every day.<ref name="n142945343" />

[[File:Little Hell Gate Bridge with Big Hell Gate Bridge in background. Wards Island, New York Co., NY. Sec. 4207, MP 8.02. - Northeast Railroad Corridor, Amtrak Route between New HAER NY,31-NEYO,167-16.tif|thumb|View of the bridge's Queens approach, main span, Wards Island approach, and Little Hell Gate span as seen from Randalls Island, looking south|alt=Black-and-white view of the bridge as seen from Randalls Island]]

Workers began renovating the bridge in April 1992;<ref name="p428480105">{{cite news |date=April 4, 1992 |title=Officials Kick Off Renovation of Hell Gate Bridge |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |page=1.25 |id={{ProQuest|428480105}}}}</ref> at Moynihan's request, the [[Municipal Art Society]] asked six architects and artists to decide the color in which the bridge should be painted.<ref name="nyt-1992-12-26">{{Cite news |last=Kaufman |first=Michael T. |date=December 26, 1992 |title=About New York; When Made Over, Hell Gate Bridge Won't Clash With East River |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/12/26/nyregion/about-new-york-when-made-over-hell-gate-bridge-won-t-clash-with-east-river.html |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308180811/https://www.nytimes.com/1992/12/26/nyregion/about-new-york-when-made-over-hell-gate-bridge-won-t-clash-with-east-river.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The bridge was repainted a deep red hue known as Hell Gate Red.<ref name="NYT-Kilgannon" /> The paint consisted of two layers of [[epoxy coating]], a urethane layer, and a clear layer to protect against [[ultraviolet]] rays and corrosion.<ref name="In 2024 q032" /><ref name="NYT-Kilgannon" /> Due to a flaw in the paint, the red color began to fade before the work was completed.<ref name="NYT-Kilgannon">{{cite news |last1=Kilgannon |first1=Corey |title=A Bad Impression Outlasts a Bridge's New Paint |url=http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/08/a-bad-impression-outlasts-a-bridges-new-paint/ |access-date=January 10, 2015 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |date=March 8, 2012 |archive-date=January 10, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150110085337/http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/08/a-bad-impression-outlasts-a-bridges-new-paint/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The repainting was completed in 1996,<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 12, 1996 |title=Re-covered Bridge |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-re-covered-bridge/142952269/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |pages=615 |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308193703/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-re-covered-bridge/142952269/ |url-status=live}}</ref> and graffiti began to appear on the viaducts shortly afterward.<ref name="Greenstein p. 50">{{harvnb|Greenstein|2004|ps=.|page=50}}</ref> Beginning in the 1990s,<ref name="Evelly 2013 x193">{{cite web |last=Evelly |first=Jeanmarie |date=December 25, 2013 |title=Astoria Group Wants to Light Up Hell Gate Bridge |url=https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20131225/astoria/astoria-group-wants-light-up-hell-gate-bridge/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |website=DNAinfo New York |archive-date=March 8, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240308214839/https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20131225/astoria/astoria-group-wants-light-up-hell-gate-bridge/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> local residents and students painted several murals under the Queens approach viaduct.<ref name="Kern-Jedrychowska 2012 c694">{{cite web |last=Kern-Jedrychowska |first=Ewa |date=August 23, 2012 |title=Greek Gods to Adorn Hell Gate Bridge in New Mural |url=https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20120823/astoria/greek-gods-adorn-hell-gate-bridge-new-mural/ |access-date=March 8, 2024 |website=DNAinfo New York |archive-date=September 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210917184741/https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20120823/astoria/greek-gods-adorn-hell-gate-bridge-new-mural/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Providence and Worcester Railroad]] freight trains carrying stone from quarries in Connecticut began using the bridge in 1996 to reach Long Island.<ref name="Hartley 2016">{{Cite magazine |last=Hartley |first=Scott A. |date=April 2016 |title=The key to Providence & Worcester's success: Reinvention |magazine=[[Trains Magazine]] |page=53 |oclc=945631712}}</ref> The [[Oak Point Link]] near the bridge's Bronx end was completed in 1998, allowing freight trains from the [[Hudson Line (Metro-North)|Hudson Line]] (to the west) to access the bridge without having to make multiple tight turns.<ref name=":2" /><ref name="p203737509">{{cite magazine |last=Greenstein |first=Joe |date=Jul 1999 |title=New York City studies rail freight options |magazine=Railway Age |pages=33–35 |volume=200 |issue=7 |id={{ProQuest|203737509}}}}</ref> In addition, as part of the 1998 [[Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century]], Congress allocated $15 million{{efn-lr|About ${{Inflation|index=US-GDP|start_year=1998|value=15|fmt=c}} million in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}{{Inflation/fn|US-GDP|group=lower-alpha}}}} to repaint the bridge.<ref name="Dao 1998 l5522">{{cite web |last=Dao |first=James |date=May 23, 1998 |title=$200 Billion Bill For Public Works Passed by Congress |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/23/nyregion/200-billion-bill-for-public-works-passed-by-congress.html |access-date=March 8, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |postscript=none |archive-date=October 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221019041027/https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/23/nyregion/200-billion-bill-for-public-works-passed-by-congress.html |url-status=live}}; {{Cite news |last=Sheridan |first=Dick |date=June 28, 1998 |title=Target Traffic Snarls, Noise / Feds Ok 15b in Aid for State Projects |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |page=1 |id={{ProQuest|313600816}}}}</ref> By then, 34 Amtrak trains used the bridge daily.<ref name="p896790519">{{cite news |last=Varner |first=Bill |date=October 11, 1999 |title=A step closer to Penn Station |work=The Journal News |page=B.1 |id={{ProQuest|896790519}}}}</ref>