BNSF News

Work to Update Burlington Bridge Is Under Way

2009-09-28

Work is under way to replace the swing span across the navigation channel on BNSF's 118-year-old bridge across the Mississippi River at Burlington, Iowa.

A modern vertical lift-span will replace the swing span, and the width of the navigation channel will increase from just less than 150 feet to more than 300 feet. The new design will accommodate the largest barge tows.

The $70 million project is expected to be complete by the summer of 2011. The current bridge, built in 1891, links Burlington with Gulfport, Ill.

Information about the update was previously announced in BNSF News in February 2009, with more information released in April.

Construction of the lift-span is being financed in part through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and the Truman-Hobbs program, which provide federal funds to alter bridges found to be unreasonably obstructive to navigation. The Burlington Bridge ranks among the top three U.S. bridges most frequently struck by barges or towing vessels.

The bridge is used by about 30 trains a day, including two Amtrak trains linking Chicago and the West Coast. The bridge opens about 300 times a month to let river traffic pass, and about 24 million tons of waterborne commerce passed through the bridge in 2008. Located on the Ottumwa Subdivision, the bridge is 2,002 feet long and carries about 45 million gross tons of traffic annually.

Paul Nowicki, assistant vice president, Government and Public Policy, said BNSF is working on a second phase to renovate the rest of the bridge.

While construction is going on to convert the bridge to a vertical lift-span bridge, Nowicki said BNSF is trying to secure funding to replace the rest of the bridge. With help from Iowa Gov. Chet Culver, an application was submitted to the federal government for a Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery Grant.

BNSF is hoping to get work under way on both phases of the bridge project simultaneously, according to Steve Millsap, BNSF's assistant vice president, Structures. Initial engineering and environmental work has been completed.

BNSF Headquarters

For more information on the company and its transportation solutions, visit the BNSF Web site at www.bnsf.com