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It could be the plot of a Stephen King novel: A train full of commuters hurtling toward New York City in the pre-dawn dark comes to a screeching halt at Little Snake Hill in New Jersey.

The passengers steel themselves against the collective fear that the bridge their train is poised to cross will swing open to allow an approaching boat to pass.

But it’s too late. The 108-year-old Portal Bridge slowly pivots over the Hackensack River as thousands of commuters say a memorial prayer for whatever plans they had for the day.

In the horror stories that train riders in the New York area share, there is no more menacing boogeyman than the Portal Bridge. The movable swing-span bridge has a nasty habit of failing to close properly after opening to let a boat pass, blocking all train traffic between New York City and most points to the west and south.