View an article regarding the construction of this grade separation project.
Located in the city of Joliet, this girder bridge crosses York Avenue and Washington Street, near the Joliet Union Station.
Prior to the track elevation in the area, the Michigan Central and Rock Island were able to directly connect to the Chicago & Alton, which used to follow York Avenue. However, the C&A was rerouted to be parallel with the Santa Fe, requiring a connection bridge jointly owned by all four railroads.
Built in 1909, the bridge features three spans of through plate girder to cross Washington Street. In addition, eight spans of concrete slab are used to cross York Avenue. In addition, the bridge rests on concrete and steel substructures. The entire bridge features a curved shape and a ballasted deck.
Because this bridge is set on a curve, the geometry of the piers is unusual. On the through girder spans, the floor beams have largely been replaced.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, although the steel members are not in as good of condition.
The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.
The photo above is an overview.