Pinole's San Pablo Ave. Bridge over BNSF railroad

San Pablo Ave. Bridge over BNSF railroad

Project Description
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The City of Pinole plans to replace the existing San Pablo Avenue Bridge over the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) railroad track just north of downtown. San Pablo Avenue is a four-lane regional arterial through western Contra Costa County that connects Pinole with the City of San Pablo to the south and City of Hercules to the north. 
Purpose & Need
The purpose of the project is to provide a safe, modern bridge and roadway that enhances and supports multi-modal transportation.  The new bridge will maintain four vehicular lanes with bike/pedestrian facilities meeting current standards. The existing bridge is a 13-span reinforced concrete slab structure constructed in 1938 and has reached the end of its service life.  In the 2018 Structure Inventory and Appraisal Report, the existing bridge was listed as structurally deficient with a sufficiency rating of 33.5 making it eligible for Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Highway Bridge Program (HBP) replacement funding.
History
The City of Pinole completed a Project Study Report in 2015 to identify alternatives to update the existing bridge to meet current design and safety standards. Structural deficiencies were documented and it was recommended to pursue grant funding for the bridge replacement.  The City was approved for initial funding from the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Highway Bridge Program (HBP). The total budget identified to complete the preliminary engineering exceeds the amount of funding Caltrans committed to the project of the State's share in the current HBP. In Spring 2020, the City of Pinole selected Quincy Engineering to develop the project and work began on preliminary engineering and environmental technical studies in Spring 2020. The preliminary engineering will be completed in two phases due to funding limitations. Completion of preliminary design is necessary to develop a final cost estimate for the project..