§ 117.903 - Darby Creek.

§ 117.903 Darby Creek.

(a) The draw of the Conrail automated railroad bridge, mile 0.25, at Essington, shall operate as follows:

(1) The bridge will be operated remotely by the South Jersey Train Dispatcher located in Mt. Laurel, NJ. Operational information will be provided 24 hours a day by telephone at [phone].

(2) From April 1 through October 31, the draw shall be left in the open position and will only be lowered for the passage of trains and to perform periodic maintenance authorized in accordance with subpart A of this part.

(3) From November 1 through March 31, the draw shall open on signal if at least 24 hours notice is given by telephone at [phone]. Operational information will be provided 24 hours a day by telephone at [phone].

(4) The timeframe to initiate the bridge closure will be not more than 10 minutes before a train will arrive at the bridge location. If a train, moving toward the bridge has crossed the home signal for the bridge, the train may continue across the bridge and must clear the bridge prior to stopping for any reason. Trains shall be controlled so that any delay in opening of the draw shall not exceed fifteen minutes except as provided in § 117.31(b).

(5) The bridge will be equipped with cameras and channel sensors to visually and electronically ensure the waterway is clear before the bridge closes. The video and sensors are located and monitored at the remote operating location in Mt. Laurel, NJ. The channel sensors signal will be a direct input to the bridge control system. In the event of failure or obstruction of the infrared channel sensors, the bridge will automatically stop closing and the South Jersey Train Dispatcher will return the bridge to the open position. In the event of video failure the bridge will remain in the full open position.

(6) The Conrail Railroad center span light will change from fixed green to flashing red anytime the bridge is not in the full open position.

(7) Prior to downward movement of the span, the horn will sound two prolonged blasts, followed by a pause, and then two short blasts until the bridge is seated and locked down. At the time of movement, the center span light will change from fixed green to flashing red and remain flashing until the bridge has returned to its full open position.

(8) When the train controller at Mt. Laurel has verified that rail traffic has cleared, they will sound the horn five times to signal the draw is about to return to its full open position.

(9) During upward movement of the span, the horn will sound two prolonged blasts, followed by a pause, and then sound two short blasts until the bridge is in the full open position. The center span light will continue to flash red until the bridge is in the fully open position.

(10) When the draw cannot be operated from the remote site, a bridge tender must be called to operate the bridge in the traditional manner. Personnel shall be dispatched to arrive at the bridge as soon as possible, but not more than one hour after malfunction or disability of the remote system.

(b) The Reading Railroad Bridge, mile 0.3, at Essington, will be left in the full open position at all times.

[CGD05-01-052, 67 FR 64170, Feb. 11, 2002, as amended by CGD05-06-086, 71 FR 77615, Dec. 27, 2006; USCG-2014-0367, 79 FR 68776, Nov. 19, 2014; USCG-2020-0304, 85 FR 58278, Sept. 18, 2020]