September 2019 Edition

North of downtown Fresno, rebar is now being placed for the floor of the box that will carry high-speed trains through the trench alongside the Union Pacific lines and under State Route 180. Under the highway, the support scaffolding is in place for the lid of the box in preparation for a series of concrete pours to form the lid. The walls, floor and lid will all consist of solid concrete, about five feet thick.

At the Cedar Viaduct on the south side of Fresno, crews continue constructing the pieces of the viaduct that will eventually cross over State Route 99. Ironworkers are currently tying rebar for an upcoming deck pour. Once the viaduct is complete on either side of the highway, precast concrete girders will be set to span the highway lanes. One of the largest structures on Construction Package 1, the Cedar Viaduct will be about three-quarters of a mile long when it’s complete.

On Construction Package 2-3, crews are preparing for a concrete pour by cleaning up the bridge deck with magnets. The magnets help them pick up the small pieces of wire left over from tying the deck rebar and nails from the deck construction. The Excelsior Avenue overcrossing, north of the town of Hanford in Kings County, will take traffic over the future high-speed rail line.

At the north end of Construction Package 1 in Madera County, a dozer operator moves and compacts the dirt being hauled in to build up the north side of the Road 27 overcrossing. Eventually the fill will reach the level of the bridge deck when it will be paved. The overcrossing will take Road 27 traffic over an existing BNSF line and the future high-speed rail line.

Construction has begun on the abutments for an overcrossing at Avenue 10 in Madera County. The crossing will take Avenue 10 traffic over the future high-speed rail line, just like the recently completed crossings at Avenue 8 and Avenue 11. Also like those crossings the roadway will be completely closed during construction with traffic detoured to Avenue 11 and Avenue 9.

Pre-cast concrete deck panels have been placed to form the deck of the Avenue 12 overcrossing over the BNSF tracks east of Madera Community College. Crews will next begin setting rebar in preparation for an eventual deck concrete pour. The overcrossing being built alongside busy Avenue 12 will take traffic over the future high-speed trains and an existing BNSF line.

Workers put the finishing touches on wing wall forms prior to a scheduled concrete pour. Within the next few weeks fill dirt will be trucked in to fill in behind the walls on the structure’s east side and bring traffic up to the level of the bridge. The Avenue 15 overcrossing will take traffic over the existing BNSF lines and a future high-speed rail line.