Canal Street railroad bridge
Canal Street railroad bridge | |
|---|---|
 Southbound Amtrak train crossing the South Branch Chicago River | |
| Coordinates | 41°51′20.3″N 87°38′13.2″W / 41.855639°N 87.637000°W / 41.855639; -87.637000 |
| Carries | Amtrak, Metra, and freight trains[1] |
| Crosses | Chicago River |
| Locale | Chicago |
| Official name | Pennsylvania Railroad Bridge #458 Canal Street Railroad Bridge |
| Other name(s) | 21st Street Bridge |
| Owner | Amtrak[1] |
| Heritage status | Chicago Landmark |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | vertical-lift bridge |
| Longest span | 272.8 feet (83.1 m)[2] |
| Rail characteristics | |
| No. of tracks | 2 |
| History | |
| Designer | Waddell & Harrington |
| Construction start | September 4, 1913[3] |
| Construction end | July 30, 1914[3] |
| Statistics | |
| Daily traffic | Nearly 100 trains[4] |
| Location | |
 | |
The Canal Street railroad bridge (or Pennsylvania Railroad bridge) is a vertical-lift bridge across the south branch of the Chicago River in Chicago, Illinois. It was designated a Chicago Landmark on December 12, 2007.[5]
Construction
The present bridge was constructed for the Pennsylvania Railroad to replace a two-track swing bridge at the same location. The necessity to allow both continued use of the swing bridge and unimpeded river traffic during building work complicated construction of the bridge. The chosen solution was to construct the bridge in the raised position above the old bridge, then demolish the old bridge once construction was completed. The bridge was designed by Waddell & Harrington, and fabricated and erected by the Pennsylvania Steel Company.[3]
Construction of the south tower began on September 4, 1913. When the two 185-foot (56 m) towers were completed, falsework for the main span was constructed in a fan shape that allowed the main span to be constructed in the raised position 130 feet (40 m) above the river. The bridge was built from steel and metal.[6]
Operation
The bridge carries two railroad tracks across the Chicago River at an angle of about 40 degrees to the center line of the river. Upon completion, the main span could be raised 111 feet (34 m) in about 45 seconds.[3] By 1916, each day the bridge was crossed by about 300 trains, and was raised for river traffic about 75 times.[7]
There are proposals for an additional or replacement bridge at Canal Street to support the full high-speed, high-frequency build out of the St. Louis-Chicago Lincoln Service passenger rail line.[4][8]
Trivia
When it was constructed in 1914, its 1500-ton main span was the heaviest of any vertical lift bridge in the United States.[6] It is the only vertical-lift bridge across the Chicago River.
Photo gallery
See also
References
- ^ a b "Amtrak's 21st Street bridge needs replaced". High Speed Rail Alliance. September 20, 2023. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
- ^ Holth, Nathan. "Canal Street Railroad Bridge". Historic Bridges of Michigan and Elsewhere. Archived from the original on 2009-03-28. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
- ^ a b c d Smith, W. L.; Priest, W. W. (1915). "The Design and Erection of the Pennsylvania Lift Bridge No. 458 Over the South Branch of the Chicago River". Journal of the Western Society of Engineers. XX. Chicago, IL: Western Society of Engineers: 478–500. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
- ^ a b Illinois Department of Transportation; Federal Railroad Administration (October 31, 2012). "Section 7: Implementation plan". Tier 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement: Chicago to St. Louis High-Speed Rail Program (Report). pp. 7–5, 7–6.
- ^ "Chicago Landmarks: Individual Landmarks and Landmark Districts designated as of January 1, 2008" (PDF). Commission on Chicago Landmarks. 2008-01-01. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-02-27. Retrieved 2009-05-01.
- ^ a b Alexander, Frances; Fitzsimons, Gray; Nicolay, John; Brucken, Carolyn (1992). "Pennsylvania Railroad, South Branch Chicago River Bridge" (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-05-08. Retrieved 2014-05-07.
- ^ Waddell, James Alexander Low (1916). Bridge Engineering. Vol. 1. New York: John Wiley & Sons Inc. p. 734. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
- ^ Illinois Department of Transportation. "Chicago – St. Louis: Full build out" (PDF). 2023 Illinois state rail plan: Final report (Report). p. 3–8.
External links
- Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. IL-112, "Pennsylvania Railroad, South Branch Chicago River Bridge, Spanning South Branch of Chicago River Bridge east of Canal Street, Chicago, Cook County, IL", 9 photos, 4 data pages, 2 photo caption pages