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44 Rail to Ship Transfer (Continued from Page 24) marked change than any other class of harbor equipment. These “ships” from the old slovenly sidewheelers have changed to fast screw boats and make a fine picture as they dart back and forth across the river. Some carry only automobiles and_ trucks, but the majority are given over to both passenger and vehicle traffic. As there are no bridges or tunnels (as yet) over or under ‘the Hudson river for vehicle traffic, the ferry- boats are called upon to carry all of the New York-New Jersey vehicular transportation. This from a few trucks and one-horse shays has increased to enormous proportions. Fifteen years ago, before automobiles came into com- mon use, there were no delays at the entrance to the ferry, but today cars and trucks line up in some places as much as a mile back from the slip. In rush hours all available saloon space is taken up by passengers and the freeboard of the boats is reduced to a TUG NO. 31—ONE OF THE BIG TYPE minimum. Most of the passengers carried are either going to or from trains, and boats must be run under five minute headway in rush hours. Eastbound freight coming to this port by rail makes up over 80 per cent of the total tonnage handled by the railroads. This is for interchange, export and local destinations. Inter- change is taken care of by both di- rect rail connections and by carfloat. Export commodities are taken from rail to ship by covered barges, re- frigerator-heater barges, derrick barges and scows. Local deliveries are made with all classes of equipment. Interchange is carried on all along the New Jersey shore by direct rail MARINE REVIEW connection, but where the different railroads are not so connected the cars are loaded on carfloats and towed by tug boats to the destined railroad, where they are taken off the floats. Carfloats are long flat bottom boats divided as between transfer and plat- form floats. The former have three tracks with two lead tracks at one end and with bumpers on the other ends. These carry about twenty cars of an average load of fifty tons, but this by no means is the limit of their load capacity. Platform floats have an island platform down the center with floor height on a level with the car OF TUGS USED FOR FLOAT SERVICE floors and a roof for protection during inclement weather. This class of boat ranges from 150 to 870 feet in length with an 11 foot depth and 40 foot beam, with standard centers for their lead tracks. Floats handling interchange cars are usually loaded in both directions and where regular interchange is carried on, floats must always be ready to take care of the cars coming into the float terminals. The cars are pushed on floats by switching locomo- tives to which are coupled light float cars to act as pushers so that cars can be placed at any spot on the float without the locomotive going over the apron of the float bridge. January, 1926 The same methods are used in pulling the cars from the floats. The float bridges have an apron of sufficient length to give smooth transition as between land and boat at any stage of the tide, and when the floats are bridged they are fixed to the apron by steel toggles. Lightered freight comes in on the piers, the rails usually running down the middle to the pier head. Merchan- dise is either unloaded to the pier or trucked (by hand trucks) direct to the barge to which it is assigned. Some freight is stored in transit on the piers, which are both single story SELF PROPELLED STEAM LIGHTER—USED FOR SPLIT DELIVERY OF FREIGHT AND FOR TAKING OFF U. 8S. MAIL and two story, and are from 500 to 1500 feet long. Storage space on the second floor is used for commodities which are destined to lay for some time. Some merchandise is given free storage for a definite period, whereas other materials are charged storage, this all depending upon the _ tariff shipped under and the commodity itself. Likewise lighterage is free de- pending upon the same qualifications. If the merchandise is to be exported the consignee must obtain a permit for loading on a definite ship at a definite time and the railroad upon receipt of this permit is obligated to lighter the consignment to the ship at the time designated. It it is late in arriving alongside the steamer it may be “shut out” and have to be delivered to another steamer at an- other point, this causing double han- dling. “Shut out” shipments cost both the consignee and the railroad money and are incidents that cause great con- sternation to the marine departments. The lighterage agent of the ma- rine department is the supervising officer and_ responsible party for the correct deliveries of lighterage freight, and his department keeps in