Officials this week announced the procurement process has begun for the Sawtooth Bridges Replacement Project in Kearny.

The effort is a key component of the Gateway Program. The work is slated to modernize and expand 1.9 miles of the Northeast Corridor in Kearny, which was built in 1907.

The Sawtooth Bridges, owned by Amtrak, carry more than 400 trains from the agency and NJ Transit per day over tracks utilized by NJ Transit, PATH and Conrail freight trains. When it is complete, the new four-track structure will double track capacity in this congested and complex location on the NEC. The project was recently awarded up to $133.32 million in grant funding by Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to support early construction activities, along with 24 other projects totaling more than $16.4 billion across the NEC.

The procurement process, which is being overseen by Amtrak in coordination with NJ Transit, officially began with the publication of Advance Notices on Amtrak’s procurement portal.

Amtrak says it intends to use the innovative CMAR approach to deliver the project and plans to issue two Requests for Qualifications in the near future, including one for the CMAR contract and another for the project, program and construction management. That will be followed with a formal Request for Proposal in 2024.

As part of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Amtrak and North America’s Building Trades Unions covering Amtrak’s major civil engineering projects, the work will be performed under a Project Labor Agreement (PLA).

“Building the new Sawtooth Bridges requires significant coordination with our partners at NJ Transit, PATH, and Conrail and we are grateful for their shared commitment to modernize and bring this critical stretch of the NEC to a state of good repair,” said Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner in a press release. “We appreciate the Biden Administration, Gov. [Phil] Murphy, and Congress for providing and helping to unlock the IIJA funding that makes this work possible.”

“The Federal Railroad Administration is pleased to see progress being made on the new Sawtooth Bridges, and we’re proud to support a project that will eliminate a major bottleneck on America’s busiest rail corridor,” said FRA Administrator Amit Bose.

“New Jersey’s rail infrastructure is critical to the economic vitality of our state and our nation,” said U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J. “Replacing the long-outdated Sawtooth Bridges will remove bottlenecks for the entire Northeast Corridor, and it will strengthen our economy and improve commuter safety.”

“NJ Transit’s collaboration with Amtrak on the Sawtooth Bridges Replacement Project is a key component in advancing the overall Gateway Program,” said Kevin Corbett, NJ Transit president and CEO and co-chair of the Northeast Corridor Commission. “Together with NJ Transit’s Portal North Bridge Replacement Project, we are eliminating century-old bottlenecks in the busiest section of the Northeast Corridor. We look forward to working with our partners at Amtrak to continue to improve the reliability and customer experience for New Jersey commuters.”