Carfloat Mooring & Pinning Procedures

INDUSTRIAL & OFFLINE TERMINAL RAILROADS
OF BROOKLYN, QUEENS, STATEN ISLAND, BRONX & MANHATTAN:

CARFLOAT MOORING & PINNING PROCEDURES

..This chapter is here, to give the uninformed reader a better understanding of the procedures involved in mooring and unloading / loading a carfloat. These procedures, for the most part, would apply to all railroads operating float bridges.
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Pontoon type Float Bridges

To unload / load carfloats at pontoon type float bridges, the following procedure applies:

Tugboat approaches float bridge with carfloat, and holds it in position for mooring;
Locomotive would slowly approach onto the float bridge to weigh it down to match height of float bridge with deck of carfloat; ^[1]
Hawser lines attached to front mooring cleats on each side of carfloat and are tightened up to bring carfloat into initial alignment;
The toggles (pins) are slid into carfloat receptacles and fastened with the block;
Hawser lines would be heavily tightened again, and mooring lines from carfloat side cleats are attached to pier;
Hand jacks on the rails on the float bridge would be turned to adjust the alignment of the rails on the float bridge to match with rails on carfloat;
Locomotive pulls string of cars that are on left track, half way off the carfloat and into the yard; leaving half the string of cars still on float;
The locomotive is switched to right track, and pulls all cars off carfloat into the yard;
Locomotive returns to left most track and pulls string of cars off carfloat to clear the turnout (switch) on float bridge, for middle track;
Points of turnout are thrown to middle track, and locomotive would push string of cars onto float, couple up to string of cars on the middle track of carfloat, and pull entire string (combined left and middle track strings) into the yard.

Carfloat is now unloaded. To load carfloat, reverse procedure.

Footnotes

^[1] In the event the floatbridge is lower than the carfloat, there were two different methods used to raise a pontoon supported float bridge:

a) Manually operated float bridge jack, attached to welded steel frame at the outer end of the float bridge. This float bridge jack was simply a vertically mounted hydraulic cylinder with foot plate on bottom end of the piston. The cylinder would be hand pumped down until it met the deck of the carfloat. After it connected with the deck of carfloat pumping would continue. As the piston pushed down the carfloat, the float bridge would "rise" up and progressively out of the water, as the carfloat was more buoyant than the floatbridge. When the height of the float bridge matched the carfloat, the normal procedure would resume.

b) Some pontoon float bridges constructed in the early 1900's were equipped with a small overhead gantry with a manually operated winch. In most cases, this gantry was removed in later years and the float bridge jack mentioned above would be installed on the outer edge of the float bridge. The float bridge located at the Erie Railroad "Harlem Station" in the Bronx retained its original overhead gantry until end of service. Images can be seen on the Erie Railroad Harlem Station page of this website.

Double Apron / French (Overhead Suspended) type Float Bridges

Carfloat mooring and pinning procedures were a little different for overhead suspended float bridges.

Tugboat brings carfloat in, and the float bridge is raised or lowered by bridgeman in control cabin to bring it into correct height alignment with carfloat.
Hawser lines from power winch attached to front mooring cleats on each side of carfloat.
Carfloat would be drawn in tight to float bridge.
Toggles (pins) would be slid into carfloat receptacles and chocked in.
Secondary hawser lines from manually powered winch added and tightened.
Hawser lines from carfloat side cleats attached to "finger piers" on both sides of carfloats.
Hand jacks on each set of rails would be turned to set the final alignment of float bridge rails with carfloat rails;
Locomotive pulls string of cars that are on left track half way off the carfloat and into the yard, leaving half the cars still on float;
The locomotive is switched to right most track, and pulls all cars off carfloat into the yard,
Locomotive returns to left most track and pulls string of cars off carfloat which clears the turnout (switch) for middle track.
Point of turnout are thrown, and locomotive would push string of cars onto float, couple up to string of cars on the middle track of carfloat, and pull entire string (left and middle track strings) into the yard.
While this is taking place, the float bridge operator, located in the float bridge control cabin; will raise and lower the float bridge depending on the weights, tilt, tide, etc. The float bridge control cabin is elevated to the right and above of right float bridge track and had a bay window facing tracks for good viewing.

To load carfloat, reverse procedure. See graphics & photos at following link:

CLICK HERE TO VIEW
FLOAT BRIDGE MECHANISM PHOTOS

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INDUSTRIAL & TERMINAL RAILROADS
OF BROOKLYN, QUEENS, STATEN ISLAND & THE BRONX

^[1] In the event the floatbridge is lower than the carfloat, there were two different methods used to raise a pontoon supported float bridge:
a)	Manually operated float bridge jack, attached to welded steel frame at the outer end of the float bridge. This float bridge jack was simply a vertically mounted hydraulic cylinder with foot plate on bottom end of the piston. The cylinder would be hand pumped down until it met the deck of the carfloat. After it connected with the deck of carfloat pumping would continue. As the piston pushed down the carfloat, the float bridge would "rise" up and progressively out of the water, as the carfloat was more buoyant than the floatbridge. When the height of the float bridge matched the carfloat, the normal procedure would resume.
b)	Some pontoon float bridges constructed in the early 1900's were equipped with a small overhead gantry with a manually operated winch. In most cases, this gantry was removed in later years and the float bridge jack mentioned above would be installed on the outer edge of the float bridge. The float bridge located at the Erie Railroad "Harlem Station" in the Bronx retained its original overhead gantry until end of service. Images can be seen on the Erie Railroad Harlem Station page of this website.