35 replies to this topic

[MapmanNo1]

Sakonnet Railroad Bridge Goes BOOM! [2/9/07 NDN]

  If anyone's been to Tiverton Harbor on a boat, you know why I'm happy. Going through that bridge was like paddling through the rapids. Even still, it is sad to see a rail crossing disappear. Although Deval has promised the FR/NB T extensions are on his priority list, an extension to Newport is a ways away. So I'm not so sad about this one!

Quote

The $1.6 million demolition project makes way for construction of a new bridge over the Sakonnet River between Portsmouth and Tiverton.

The old railroad bridge, which was built in 1899 by the Pennsylvania Steel Co. and carried passenger and freight trains on the Old Colony & Newport Railroad, had been out of service since the early 1980s. It was left in the "open" position to allow for navigation up the Sakonnet River, but the U.S. Coast Guard considered the bridge to be an obstruction to navigation and supported its removal.

The bridge was one of three swing bridges remaining in Rhode Island and served the railroad during its busiest period, the summers of 1912 and 1913, according to the DOT. At that time, 24 trains a day departed Newport, and the Boston-to-Newport run was very popular. The line also carried two freight trains a day and special excursions and private charters for the owners of Newport's mansions and estates on Bellevue Avenue and Ocean Drive.

A piece of the bridge will live on, however: A 24-inch wide phosphor-bronze center bearing - which the entire 251-foot swing span turned on - was saved by the DOT and given to the Portsmouth Historical Society, which plans to exhibit the bearing.

[mental757]

when was this rail line last used - what did it connect??

[MapmanNo1]

mental757, on Feb 9 2007, 03:36 PM, said:

when was this rail line last used - what did it connect??

History of the Newport RR Line from Old Colony & Newport Railway

[mental757]

is this the same line that the newport dinner train runs on and is this only rail access point to aquidneck island??

[MapmanNo1]

mental757, on Feb 11 2007, 08:58 AM, said:

is this the same line that the newport dinner train runs on and is this only rail access point to aquidneck island??

Sure is. The Dinner Train only runs up to Melville, though (and sometimes as far as Carnegie Abbey). The rail crossing is the northernmost in this aerial photo. Below it is the current Route 24 crossing. At the bottom of the photo is the Stone Bridge, which washed away with the Hurricane Carol in 1954. The borders of Tiverton Harbor stretch from the northern (now gone!) rail crossing to the (also gone) Stone Bridge.

The Aquidneck Island Planning Commission has a proposal searching for funding (PDF) that converts the rail right-of-way from Melville to the rail bridge into a bike path. At Melville, it would meet up with the bike lanes already installed on Burma Road.

[mental757]

PROJO:  "The saga of the Sakonnet River Bridge"

http://www.projo.com...KJ.38c66db.html

[Mothra]

I have to go to Middletown tomorrow and wondering if i should go over the bridge--does it back up? should i just take 138 instead?

[Gusterfell]

You shouldn't have any trouble getting across the Sakonnet River bridge.  There is quite a bit of work under way on the Tiverton approach road, but most of the delay-causing work is being done during the overnight hours.  Traffic tends to slow to 45 or so through the roadwork, but it moves pretty consistently throughout the day.

[mental757]

NDT:  "Portsmouth wants state to make Sakonnet bridge a priority"

http://www.newportda.../news/news4.txt

[frymasterspeck]

So, it looks like 14 months later, the contract is awarded. Per Hard Deadlines.

And for the love of Pete, be sure it has a farging bike lane. I went over that on my bike - southbound (downhill) with a wind at my back. Absolutely horrifying. (Yeah, I know...breakin' the law.)

[Cotuit]

Is Cardi the only construction company in the state?

[mental757]

PROJO:  "Finding the right pile design is a key element in replacing the Sakonnet River Bridge"

http://www.projo.com...15.3f29bed.html

[mental757]

PROJO Business Digest 4/18/09:

"
Cardi wins Sakonnet Bridge work

The Rhode Island Department of Transportation Thursday night formally awarded low bidder Cardi Corp. the contract to build a replacement for the 53-year-old Sakonnet River Bridge. Groundbreaking has been set for next Friday at 3 p.m. on the Portsmouth side of the bridge. It carries Routes 24 and 138 and connects Portsmouth and Tiverton. The new $163.7-million steel span, to be built just south of the existing bridge, is expected to be finished by 2012, although the state has offered to pay Cardi more if it finishes early. DOT spokesman Charles St. Martin said Cardi’s bid came in $22.5 million below the second-lowest bidder. The bids were opened Jan. 22. (C. Eugene Emery Jr.)"

[mental757]

Newport Daily News:  "Ground is broken on Sakonnet River bridge project"

http://www.newportda...b3414579595.txt

[mental757]

PROJO:  

"Business Digest

01:00 AM EDT on Friday, May 22, 2009


Sakonnet River Bridge work commences

Construction of the new Sakonnet River Bridge immediately south of the existing bridge has begun and will continue for about two years. A safe-work zone has been established to minimize risk to moving vessels and to prevent recreational boat traffic from entering the zone. It will involve three 250- by 72-foot barges, two 150- by 50-foot barges, multiple tugboats, and a temporary floating trestle system extending from the Portsmouth and Tiverton shorelines to the pier structures on each side of the channel. From the north, the safe-work zone begins at the old railroad bridge and extends 800 feet south of the old Sakonnet River Bridge. The zone will be delineated by white buoys extending from each side of the channel to the shoreline. A channel through the zone is marked with green buoys (15A, 15B and 15C) on the west side and red buoys (16A, 16B and 16C) on the east side. Vessels transiting the zone must stay in the channel and proceed at the slowest safe speed to minimize wake. The workboats will be monitoring VHF channel 11."

[Gusterfell]

Work has begun in a big way on this project, with noticeable excavations underway on both sides of the river.  The Tiverton/ Little Compton exit immediately adjoining the old bridge is currently being removed, as it is in the path of the new bridge.

Edited by Gusterfell, 24 August 2009 - 06:13 PM.