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| Name | CPKC Gregory Boulevard Viaduct |
| Built By | Kansas City Southern Railway |
| Currently Owned By | Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited |
| Superstructure Contractor | List Construction Company of Kansas City, Missouri |
| Consulting Engineer | Ash, Howard, Needles & Tammen of Kansas City, Missouri |
| Length | 504 Feet Total, 95 Foot Main Span |
| Width | 1 Track |
| Height Above Ground | 65 Feet |
| Superstructure Design | Open Spandrel Concrete Arch, Closed Spandrel Concrete Arch and Concrete Deck Girder |
| Substructure Design | Concrete |
| Date Built | 1928 |
| Traffic Count | 20 Trains/Day (Estimated) |
| Current Status | In Use |
| Significance | Regional Significance |
| Documentation Date | 10/8/2016 |
In 1891, the Kansas City, Nevada & Fort Smith Railroad (KCN&FS) completed 45 miles of new railroad, extending from Grandview, Missouri to Amoret, Missouri. Later the same year, an additional 12 miles were completed to Hume, Missouri. An additional 74 miles to Joplin, Missouri were completed in 1893, extending through Pittsburgh, Kansas. By the fall of 1893, the railroad had completed an additional 51 miles to Sulphur Springs, Arkansas. The same year, the railroad was reorganized as the Kansas City, Pittsburgh & Gulf Railroad (KCP&G). In 1894, 24 additional miles were completed to Siloam Springs, Arkansas; and an additional 24 miles to Stillwell, Oklahoma were completed in 1895. An additional 127 miles to Mena, Arkansas were completed in 1896. By 1898, a 16 mile branch line to Fort Smith, Arkansas would be constructed. To reach Kansas City, the railroad utilized trackage rights over the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway. By 1900, the KCP&G would be consolidated into the Kansas City Southern Railway (KCS). The KCS was a bridge railroad, connecting railroads in the southern United States to the railroad hub of Kansas City. This line made up the principal mainline of the KCS, and provided a critical connection between the Midwest and the Gulf of Mexico. By the early 1920s, the arrangement of using the Frisco tracks into Kansas City had become undesirable, and the Kansas City & Grandview Railroad was charted to construct from Grandview to Leeds, near the present day stadium complex. The line was completed in late 1929, and gave the KCS complete ownership of a line from Kansas City to the Gulf of Mexico. During the 20th Century, the KCS continued to grow, eventually obtaining a railroad line through Mexico in the 1990s. In 2023, the KCS was merged with Canadian Pacific Railway to form CPKC, the current owner of this line. From Kansas City to Pittsburgh is currently operated as the Pittsburgh Subdivision, and from Pittsburgh to Heavener, Oklahoma is operated as the Heavener Subdivision. This route now forms the backbone of the CPKC system, and traffic is expected to increase significantly over the coming years.
View an article discussing the construction of this line.
View an article discussing the construction of this line.
Located on the south side of Kansas City, this large concrete arch viaduct carries the CPKC mainline across Gregory Boulevard (formerly Flying Field Road) and an unnamed creek. Built in 1928 and completed March 1929 as the KCS constructed the Grandview Cutoff, the bridge consists of a 95-foot and two 79-foot open spandrel concrete arch spans, approached on either end by a 34-foot and two 31-foot closed spandrel concrete arches, as well as a 31-foot concrete deck girder. The bridge is set onto concrete substructures. The open spandrel arches are a barrel type span, while the closed spandrel arches use a concrete deck cast monolithically with the substructures and fascia arches, which support the loading of the spans. The concrete deck girder span at either end is disguised as an abutment, with concrete walls on the outsides of the girder. This type of span is similar to concrete skeleton abutments, which were used by some railroads to help stabilize approach embankments. The approach spans were cast monolithically, meaning the entire approach was constructed in one pour. Each individual open spandrel arch was constructed in segments, with the lower arch line constructed first, with the remaining structure following. Reports on construction indicate 48 hours was allowed between concrete pours to allow the concrete to reach the maximum allowable shrinkage. The deck of the bridge was cast with the arches, and utilizes a channel style design.
This type of viaduct was not commonly used by railroads in the United States, as it was difficult and expensive to construct. Typically, these types of viaducts were used where it was necessary to construct long spans, or an aesthetic value was desired by the railroad. It is believed that this design was chosen for this bridge and the nearby Gregory Boulevard Bridge due to the aesthetic value. The two concrete arch viaducts along the Grandview Cutoff provided significant promotional material for the KCS, with numerous company photos, advertisements and fliers created with trains crossing the bridge. Overall, the bridge appears to be in good to excellent condition, with very little deterioration noted throughout the bridge. Minor cracking has been corrected using epoxy, and very little spalling can be found throughout the structure. The author has ranked the bridge as being regionally significant, due to the large size, unusual design and relatively few similar spans in the Midwestern United States.
Citations
| Builder and build date | Engineering News-Record; Volume 104, Issue 10 |
| Railroad History Citation | ICC Valuation Information, Compiled by Richard S. Steele |