- Its complex post-tensioned superstructure was completed in just three months’ time
- California High-Speed Rail is the biggest infrastructure project in California and one of the biggest in the United States
The California Rail Builders (CRB) team reached a major milestone on its work on the California High-Speed Rail project with the completion of the Poso Creek Viaduct last week. What is most significant about this structure – one of seven within the project scope – is that its complex, post-tensioned superstructure was completed in just three months’ time.
The project team was up against a firm October 15 deadline and had to adhere to strict working hours due to environmental constraints. Regulated by both the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the State Water Board, the Poso Creek area could only be accessed during the dry season and only during daylight hours because it serves as a riparian habitat. Additionally, there were several measures required to further protect the creek bed, including perimeter controls, exclusionary wildlife fencing, spill preventative measures and constant soil management.
“I am extremely proud of what we have accomplished here. We have an outstanding team of professionals that have worked on the Poso Creek overpass seven days a week, all summer, in order to ensure the bridge superstructure was completed prior to October 15. It is the result of a committed team that cares about its work and the project.”
In July, crews performed the largest single concrete placement to date, with more than 100 trucks placing over 1,000 cubic yards of concrete to form the deck of the superstructure. In August, crews poured an additional 535 cubic yards of concrete to form the east and west stem walls of the viaduct.
Located in Kern County, the massive viaduct – 240 feet long and 56 feet wide – will carry high-speed rail trains over Poso Creek. California High-Speed Rail is the biggest infrastructure project in California and one of the biggest in the United States as well. Construction Package 4, which CRB is building, is 21 miles in length and started in 2016, with a current total construction value of $560 million.
“We cannot overstate the magnitude of this milestone and this project. Our work on the first high-speed rail project in North America positions Ferrovial Construction in an elite group of firms that have had the opportunity to dramatically transform mobility through high-speed rail.”
Construction Package 4 of California High-Speed Rail is estimated to be completed early 2022. Since inception, this segment of the project has employed over 300 subcontractors, all of whom continued to work throughout the COVID-19 pandemic as “essential workers.”
