When the Portal Bridge opens to let a barge pass on the Hackensack River in Kearny, odds are good tens of thousands of Amtrak and NJ Transit riders will be delayed.

Officials of both railroads have a solution, until a higher replacement bridge is built, give the U.S. Coast Guard permission to keep it closed during rush hour and make the boats wait for the trains.

Right now, a Coast Guard rule says Amtrak, the owner of the bridge, has to open it, if a vessel’s captain make a request an hour ahead of time, even during rush hour. Amtrak and NJ Transit officials officially asked the U.S. Coast Guard New York district commander to change the rule to bar rush hour openings.

Amtrak officials argued that the number of bridge openings has greatly fallen off to 14 in 2017 and 15 in 2018 as of October. The problem is the 108-year old swing bridge doesn’t always close d completely, requiring railroad workers to hammer pieces of rail back into position with sledge hammers before trains can cross it.

the Portal Bridge opened up for Santa’s sleigh and now everyone is trapped in Secaucus for the foreseeable future. time to ration the hot chocolate & cookies — Keenan Gaynor (@knngynr) December 1, 2018

On Oct. 30, 80,000 people riding 164 trains were delayed after Amtrak was required to open the bridge during the afternoon rush. The 108-year old bridge failed to close properly due to a mechanical problem, causing 90 minute delays. Not opening the bridge for river traffic would mean a $25,000 fine for Amtrak.

The request is similar to one made of the Coast Guard by U.S. Senators Cory Booker, Robert Menendez and Gov. Phil Murphy is early November.

A replacement for Portal Bridge has been designed and the state has committed additional funding. But the federal government hasn’t decided on a grant application for funding.

I will never be replaced! https://t.co/cOtMOJu2la — Portal Bridge (@ThePortalBridge) November 29, 2018

That led one frustrated rider named “Sad Jersey Commuter” to start a GoFundMe campaign with the lofty goal of doing what the feds seem unable of, raising $920 million to replace the 108-year-old Portal Bridge.

“The only way it is going to happen is if we take care of it ourselves,” Sad Jersey Commuter wrote after lambasting several public officials by name for not coming home with cash from the feds.

Is the campaign serious, an expression of commuter frustration or a way to shame public officials into action? Sad Jersey Commuter, the creator of the campaign isn’t saying and did not respond to an email request for an interview.

So far, the campaign has gotten more attention from the news media and social media. The GoFundMe page has been shared 104 times on Facebook. Since Nov. 28, only four people have committed a grand total of $20 to the drive as of Tuesday. That won’t even buy a decent sized toy train bridge.

Changing the rule is a short term solution that’s supported by the Gateway Development Corporation, a bi-state group working on a new Portal Bridge and building two new rail tunnels under the Hudson River. But it is not a substitute for a new bridge "that allows trains to run faster and more reliably and doesn’t have to open and close,” said Stephen Sigmund, a spokesman.

Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @commutinglarry. Find NJ.com on Facebook.