The Ohio Connecting Railroad Bridge is a steel bridge which crosses the Ohio River at Brunot's Island at the west end of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It consists of two major through truss spans over the main and back channels of the river, of 508 feet (155 m)[1] and 406 feet (124 m) respectively, with deck truss approaches.
Ohio Connecting Bridge
The Ohio Connecting Railroad Bridge (with the McKees Rocks Bridge in the background).
The original Ohio Connecting Bridge was built in 1890 by the Ohio Connecting Railway. It was a single-track bridge. It was built as a freight bypass so the freight trains of the Pennsylvania Railroad could bypass the congested passenger station in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Traffic could move in either direction between the Pennsylvania Railroad main line in Pitcairn, Pennsylvania (part of the Pittsburgh Division at that location) and the Fort Wayne Line at the north end of the Ohio Connecting Bridge. Trains would traverse the Port Perry Branch, Monongahela Division, and Panhandle Division in order to reach the Pittsburgh Division or the Fort Wayne Line.
By 1915 the original bridge was not large enough to handle the increasing freight traffic, so a new bridge was built with two tracks. The new bridge was built around the old bridge while the old bridge was still in service. The new bridge also had a siding and car elevator in the center so coal could be delivered to the coal-fired power plant on the island.
This 1915 bridge is still in service.
The north end of the bridge has a wye so trains can be directed west or east. If a train is directed east it must pass next to Island Avenue Yard on the Isle Connector to get to the mainline.
Trains at the south end of the bridge could be directed east onto the Monongahela Division or south/southwest onto the Panhandle Division, Scully Yard, or onto the Chartiers Branch.
In 1968 the Pennsylvania Railroad merged with the New York Central to form Penn Central. Penn Central became a part of Conrail in 1976. In 1999, CSX and Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) bought Conrail, with NS getting 58% and CSX getting 42%. The Ohio Connecting Bridge was acquired by NS.
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NS continues to use the bridge as part of the route trains with double-stack containers use. This practice was started by Conrail in 1995. It now connects the Mon Line, and the P&OC RR with the Fort Wayne Line and Main Line. The entire Panhandle Division/Weirton Secondary was abandoned in 1996, but the interchange with the former line remains active to interchange cars with the Pittsburgh and Ohio Central Railroad. Many coal trains coming out of the Monongahela Valley also use this bridge. Sometimes mixed freight and other types of trains use the bridge. No scheduled passenger trains use the bridge.
Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. PA-509, "Ohio Connecting Railway, Brunot's Island Bridge, Spanning Ohio River at Brunot's Island, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA", 5 photos, 8 data pages, 1 photo caption page
January 01, 1970
ohio, connecting, railroad, bridge, steel, bridge, which, crosses, ohio, river, brunot, island, west, pittsburgh, pennsylvania, united, states, consists, major, through, truss, spans, over, main, back, channels, river, feet, feet, respectively, with, deck, tru. The Ohio Connecting Railroad Bridge is a steel bridge which crosses the Ohio River at Brunot s Island at the west end of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania United States It consists of two major through truss spans over the main and back channels of the river of 508 feet 155 m 1 and 406 feet 124 m respectively with deck truss approaches Ohio Connecting BridgeThe Ohio Connecting Railroad Bridge with the McKees Rocks Bridge in the background Coordinates40 27 46 N 80 02 34 W 40 4628 N 80 0429 W 40 4628 80 0429Carries2 rail linesCrossesOhio RiverLocalePittsburgh PennsylvaniaCharacteristicsDesignSteel truss bridgeLongest span508 feet 155 m Clearance below68 feet 21 m HistoryOpened1915Location Oblique view of main channel span Contents 1 History 1 1 Original bridge 1 2 Current bridge 2 The present 3 See also 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksHistory editOriginal bridge edit The original Ohio Connecting Bridge was built in 1890 by the Ohio Connecting Railway It was a single track bridge It was built as a freight bypass so the freight trains of the Pennsylvania Railroad could bypass the congested passenger station in downtown Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Traffic could move in either direction between the Pennsylvania Railroad main line in Pitcairn Pennsylvania part of the Pittsburgh Division at that location and the Fort Wayne Line at the north end of the Ohio Connecting Bridge Trains would traverse the Port Perry Branch Monongahela Division and Panhandle Division in order to reach the Pittsburgh Division or the Fort Wayne Line Construction of the northern approach to the bridge required the demolition of the original Pittsburgh U S Marine Hospital Pittsburgh 2 Current bridge edit By 1915 the original bridge was not large enough to handle the increasing freight traffic so a new bridge was built with two tracks The new bridge was built around the old bridge while the old bridge was still in service The new bridge also had a siding and car elevator in the center so coal could be delivered to the coal fired power plant on the island This 1915 bridge is still in service The north end of the bridge has a wye so trains can be directed west or east If a train is directed east it must pass next to Island Avenue Yard on the Isle Connector to get to the mainline Trains at the south end of the bridge could be directed east onto the Monongahela Division or south southwest onto the Panhandle Division Scully Yard or onto the Chartiers Branch In 1968 the Pennsylvania Railroad merged with the New York Central to form Penn Central Penn Central became a part of Conrail in 1976 In 1999 CSX and Norfolk Southern Railway NS bought Conrail with NS getting 58 and CSX getting 42 The Ohio Connecting Bridge was acquired by NS The present editNS continues to use the bridge as part of the route trains with double stack containers use This practice was started by Conrail in 1995 It now connects the Mon Line and the P amp OC RR with the Fort Wayne Line and Main Line The entire Panhandle Division Weirton Secondary was abandoned in 1996 but the interchange with the former line remains active to interchange cars with the Pittsburgh and Ohio Central Railroad Many coal trains coming out of the Monongahela Valley also use this bridge Sometimes mixed freight and other types of trains use the bridge No scheduled passenger trains use the bridge See also editList of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Pennsylvania List of crossings of the Ohio RiverReferences edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ohio Connecting Railroad Bridge OCRR Bridge at Brunot Island Bridges and Tunnels of Allegheny County and Pittsburgh PA The big span on its piers Pittsburgh Daily Post 1890 08 20 p 2 Retrieved 2021 03 05 Further reading editKobus Ken Consoli Jack 1996 The Pennsy in the Steel City 150 Years of the Pennsylvania Railroad in Pittsburgh Upper Darby PA Pennsylvania Railroad Technical and Historical Society External links editHistoric American Engineering Record HAER No PA 509 Ohio Connecting Railway Brunot s Island Bridge Spanning Ohio River at Brunot s Island Pittsburgh Allegheny County PA 5 photos 8 data pages 1 photo caption page Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ohio Connecting Railroad Bridge amp oldid 1219652280, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
