San Joaquin County, California Bridges: W120-S5 Connector across the San Joaquin River

April 2014 (37.78580 Degrees, -121.30640 Degrees) Mossdale (SR 120) Bridge

Unlike the Manthey Road Bridge, the adjacent Mossdale (State Route 120) Bridge (29 0016F) appears to be getting some much needed attention. Although this bridge still has its counterweight, like all the other bridges across this part of the San Joaquin River, it can no longer move. 

Despite being rendered inoperable, the bascule span still maintains a very striking appearance. The counterweight and trunnion are above the roadway, which could have been unattractive, but the designer carefully shaped the counterweight to match the flared end of the bascule span. The designer used metal aggregate in the counterwieght to reduce it's size. The concrete piers also have an attractive appearance.

Unfortunately, this bridge is in almost as poor a shape as it's neighbor (with a structural deficiency rating of 13). This is particularly problematic since unlike the Manthey Bridge, the Mossdale Bridge is part of a major interchange (I-5/120) and carries about 40,000 vehicles a day. However, it does look like it is being renovated.

The W120-S5 Connector Bridge is a five span bridge with continuous pony truss approach spans and a short through truss at the counterweight. This bridge is 583 ft long with a 130 ft main span.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: W120-S5 Connector across the San Joaquin River by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Manthey Road Bridge across the San Joaquin River

April 2014 (37.78596, -121.30677 Degrees) Manthey Road Bridge

The Manthey Road Highway Bridge (29C0127) is composed of a pin connected (8 panel) Parker through truss span on the west side of the San Joaquin River and a single leaf riveted Strauss bascule span on the east side of the river. However, the counterweights have been removed from the bascule span, which can no longer move.

The two main spans are supported on pier walls and the approach (steel stringer) spans are supported on two-column bents. The bridge is 540 ft long with a 200 ft long main (through truss) span. 

This bridge was built in 1926 and it's in poor condition. The sidewalk (as previously mentioned) is covered in weathered plywood. When I tried to walk on it my boots immediately punched through it (luckily I was holding tightly to the railing). The trusses are covered in rust. This bridge has a low sufficiency rating (7.1) with the deck rated 'critical' and superstructure rated 'serious.' Manthey Road is used as a frontage road for I-5 and it had traffic on it while I was taking pictures. I noticed it was on the California Historical Bridge Site, so maybe it will soon get some much needed attention.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Manthey Road Bridge across the San Joaquin River by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Manthey Road Pedestrian Bridge across the San Joaquin River

April 2014 (37.78593, -121.30706) Manthey Road Pedestrian Bridge

Because the sidewalk on the adjacent Manthey Road Bridge is deteriorated (and because it's next to a park) the county built a pedestrian bridge at this site (see photo above). This bridge is so new that I couldn't find any information about it. However, we can see that it's a four span Pratt pony truss on single column hammerhead bents with pipe shear keys to keep the spans from being knocked off during earthquakes. In Google earth, I measured the bridge to be about 650 ft long across the San Joaquin River.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Manthey Road Pedestrian Bridge across the San Joaquin River by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Mossdale Railroad Bridge across the San Joaquin River

April 2014 (37.78749 Degrees, -121.30794 Degrees) Mossdale Railroad Bridge

In the town of Lathrop (north of Ripon and east of Tracy) are seven bridges including several historic structures across the San Joaquin River. Today's bridge is the Union Pacific Mossdale Railroad Bridge. It's composed of a six panel, riveted Warren truss with a center span that was once raised and lowered by the towers on the side spans. The river is too shallow at this location to carry large boats today. Besides, the bridge has 22 ft vertical clearance in the closed position to allow for the passage of vessels. The bridge is 526 ft long with a 110 ft long center span. This is the third railroad bridge at this site, the current bridge was built in 1946, and it is registered as a California Historical Site (780-7). 

There is a lot of good information about this bridge. The Trainorders website discusses the history of the bridge, disasters that occurred on the railroad line (between Mococo and Lathrop), and the different trains that it carried. 

Apparently, the first bridge at this site (built in 1869) was the final link of the Transcontinental Railroad. Before it was completed passengers had to get off in Lathrop and take a ferry across the river before boarding another train on the opposite side.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Mossdale Railroad Bridge across the San Joaquin River by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Stanislaus River Bridges

April 2014 (37.73000, -121.11000) Stanislaus River Bridges

I had a difficult time photographing today's bridges across the Stanislaus River in Ripon. I drove up and down both sides of State Route 99 but I couldn't find any river access. I ended up walking on a long path that included a pedestrian bridge over the river, but the bridge was covered in mesh that prevented an unobstructed view of the bridges. Finally, I climbed over the fencing at the bridge abutment and hiked over fallen trees and swampy ground to the river. Unfortunately, the sun was low in the horizon and shined directly into my lens. Moreover the bridges were so crowded together, that it was hard to tell them apart.

 There are four bridges that cross the Stanislaus River in Ripon. The pedestrian bridge on the east side is a three span steel truss. The approach spans are Pratt trusses with the diagonal members sloping towards the middle of the bridge.  The main span is a long Parker truss, which is a Pratt truss with rounded top chord. There is no information about when this bridge was built but there is a US Corps of Engineers sign on the path suggesting it may have been built recently.

West of the pedestrian bridge are the two State Route 99 Bridges (29 0013L/R). The southbound structure includes a two span closed spandrel arch that was designed by John B. Leonard and built in 1904. The bridge was rehabilitated in 1967 but the two arches remain. The northbound bridge was also an arch that was built in 1948 (probably when the highway was widened) but those arches were replaced with steel girders in 1970. 

We can see the steel deck girder spans that carry the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railroad below the soffits of the highway bridges. However, like these other bridges, this is a replacement for a much older bridge that was photographed and documented by the Historic American Engineering Record for the U.S. Library of Congress. The previous bridge was a Pratt truss that was fabricated by the American Bridge Company in 1905. The current bridge was built in 1995 (although the girders look far older and may have been sitting in a yard. Perhaps the piers are from the older bridge?

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Stanislaus River Bridges by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Fulton Avenue Overcrossing across State Route 99

April 2014 (37.74655 Degrees, -121.13337 Degrees) Futon Avenue OC

Driving southeast on SR-99 through the town of Ripon I came upon the Fulton Avenue Overcrossing (29 0185). Although the bridge isn't that interesting (a 5 span continuous concrete box girder bridge) I was impressed by its ability to accommodate a variety of lifeline/transportation modes in a very efficient manner. 

Starting at the left side of the bridge, the first span goes over the frontage road, the next two spans cross over the six lane expressway, the forth span crosses over a wide shoulder, and the fifth span crosses over railroad tracks. 

Roads that cross over expressways require steep embankments to attain the proper vertical clearance. The embankment on the right side includes a tunnel for the southbound frontage road. This is a clever solution that minimizes the amount of right-of-way required for the bridge. Without the tunnel, the embankment would have to be placed further to the west taking up valuable real estate. I'm surprised that we don't see more bridge embankments with tunnels going through them.
However, the transportation engineer still has some more tools to make this interchange more efficient. The right embankment ends in a traffic circle while the left embankment carries on and off ramps between Fulton Road and SR-99. Bridge engineers too often think of roads as a way to connect our bridges, but (of course) bridges are just a small part of the transportation system.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Fulton Avenue Overcrossing across State Route 99 by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: 11th Street Overhead across the Union Pacific Railroad

April 2014 (37.73961 Degrees, -121.41032 Degrees) 11th Street Overhead

The 11th Street Overhead (29C0126) is a 1441 ft long viaduct that was built in 1936. This bridge used to carry Interstate 5, but it was relocated to the east and so the bridge eventually was relinquished to the City of Tracy. The bridge is mostly T girders but over the Union Pacific Railroad it switches to steel girders on a 64 degree skew. The bridge was widened to 62 ft in 1960. 

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: 11th Street Overhead across the Union Pacific Railroad by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Tracy Boulevard Bridge across the Grant Line Canal

April 2014 (37.82000, -121.45000 Degrees) Grant Line Canal Bridge

After crossing the Middle River Bridge, I turned south onto Tracy Blvd and arrived at the Grant Line Canal Bridge (29C0022). This is a long concrete trestle bridge (built in 1959) with bascule spans over the canal. 

The bridge is 471 ft long with 163 ft long bascule spans. It's 28 ft wide and provides about 17 ft vertical clearance over the canal. The bridge is 55 years old and was never rehabilitated. It carries 2000 vehicles a day, it's in satisfactory condition, and has a sufficiency rating of 57. 

My feeling is that this bridge may still be opened and closed.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Tracy Boulevard Bridge across the Grant Line Canal by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: State Route 4 (Borden Highway) across the Middle River

February 2014 (37.89072 Degrees, -121.48932 Degrees) Middle River Bridge

Traveling east on State Route 4 (the Borden Highway) I drove up a rise and came upon the Middle River Bridge (29 0049). The bridge is composed of two short pony truss spans on the east side, two big through truss spans across the channel, and a pony truss span on the west side of the river.

After doing a little research, I decided that this bridge used to be a swing bridge, almost identical to the SR-4 Bridge across the Old River that we studied in February. The bridge was built in 1915 but in the 1990s Caltrans converted it from 'movable' to 'fixed' and also strengthened it. I'm wondering if they also raised the bridge and and perhaps widened it (although the through truss strongly resembles the swing spans before the bridge was rebuilt).

The bridge crosses the Middle River where it meets Trapper Slough, and so State Route 4 jogs to the left after crossing the river to follow the slough. 

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: State Route 4 (Borden Highway) across the Middle River by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Woodward Ferry across the Middle River

April 2014 (37.92028 Degrees, -121.51639 Degrees) Woodward Ferry

The only way to get onto Woodward Island is by taking a ferry across the Middle River, which runs six days a week. I previously mentioned another cable ferry that carries vehicles from Eight Mile Road onto Venice Island. These ferries mostly carry tractors because the islands are farmland (they also have pipelines that require maintenance). These are the last ferries still operated by San Joaquin County. They're expensive to maintain and operate and they can also be dangerous. A recent article in the San Joaquin Record suggests that they may be replaced by bridges fairly soon.

A submerged cable is connected to the ramp on each side of the river and a winch pulls the cable up to the water's surface as it drags the loaded barge across the river. Occasionally, a boat will pass too close to the ferry and break the cable. The Woodward Ferry has the county bridge number (29C0447).

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: Woodward Ferry across the Middle River by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: BNSF Bacon Island Bridge across the Middle River

April 2014 (37.93979 Degrees, -121.53310 Degrees) Bacon Island Bridge

Three Hugo Abt designed bascule bridges carry the BNSF Railway across rivers in San Joaquin County. The Woodward Island Bridge across the Old River was studied in February and can be seen (in the distance) in the photo above. The Bacon Island Bridge across the Middle River will be studied today. We'll look at the 3rd Hugo Abt Bascule Bridge over the San Joaquin River next week.

The BNSF - Bacon Island Bridge is part of a long concrete trestle that carries the BNSF tracks over a cut made between Woodward and Bacon Islands. The BNSF - Woodward Island Bridge is at the western end of the trestle. All of the bascule bridges were built by the American Bridge Company between 1928 and 1930.

On an Abt bridge, a large weight is suspended from a tall steel truss. As the weight swings down, a shorter truss folds, which lifts up the adjacent steel girder span.  A photo of an Abt bridge in the open position is provided by the HistoricBridges Website. 

According to 'Movable Bridge Engineering,' the vertical clearance for the Bacon Island Bridge is 11 ft in the closed position. However, whether this bridge is still being opened is questionable. 

Railroad bridge engineers have little interest in bridge aesthetics, which results in their bridges having a very utilitarian appearance. Apparently, a lack of concern about aesthetics results in a strong aesthetic statement. 

These bridges carry freight and passenger trains across the California Delta.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: BNSF Bacon Island Bridge across the Middle River by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: South Bacon Island Road Bridge across the Middle River

April 2014 (37.95608 Degrees, -121.52795 Degrees) South Bacon Island Road Bridge

A second South Bacon Island Road Bridge (29C0108) crosses the Middle River a little south of yesterday's bridge. The current bridge is a 975 ft long concrete trestle with a 120 ft long steel girder swing bridge across the channel that was built in 1995. 

A previous bridge had been built in 1905 at this site. It was photographed by the Library of Congress and documented for its historic significance: 'The Bacon Island Road Bridge is the oldest highway swing span bridge in California. It is important in local history for its relation to agricultural and economic development in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. It is the work of an unknown bridge company which utilized Carnegie Steel and U.S. Steel Company components.'

San Joaquin County, California Bridges: South Bacon Island Road Bridge across the Middle River by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.