A railroad car float or rail barge is an unpowered barge with rail tracks mounted on its deck. It is used to move railroad cars across water obstacles, or to locations they could not otherwise go, and is towed by a tugboat or pushed by a towboat. As such, the car float is a specialized form of the lighter, as opposed to a train ferry, which is self-powered.
Car Float
The only remaining car float service currently in operation in the Port of New York and New Jersey is operated by New York New Jersey Rail. This company, operated by the bi-state government agency Port Authority of New York & New Jersey is the successor to the New York Cross Harbor Railroad. Car float service operates between Bush Terminal in Brooklyn, New York and Greenville Yard in Jersey City, New Jersey. It has been proposed that car float service be transferred from Bush Terminal 50th float bridge to 65th Street / Bay Ridge Yard float bridges.
In order to load rail cars onto car floats you need a “float” or “transfer bridge”. The transfer bridge functions as a movable bridge for the purpose of allowing adjustment between the top of rail elevation on land and on the car float. In New York Harbor, the typical tidal fluctuation is up to 10 feet. As this relative elevation change is due to tide and the car float free board changes, the bridge must adjust to provide the connection between the car float and land. – cf. structuremag.org
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Copyright © 2015 The Yacht Owner – Car Float – Definition – cf. Wikipedia
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Just curious, I wonder if you have any photos of reefers on your barges. I am trying to find a photo or two that show a Santa Fe Reefer from any time period from 1919 thru 1970 that show that cars of the Santa Fe actually got to the new york area., especially a reefer.. please check your vault of photos to see if you have any with an orange car with the Santa Fe logo on it. Thanks for your help.
Bob Becker
Crown point indiana
219-662-1878
Very interesting, but no, Bob. I don’t have such pictures 🙂