Stanislaus County, California Bridges: 9th Street Bridge across the Tuolumne River (2)

September 2014 (37.62750 Degrees, -120.98778 Degrees) 9th Street Bridge

Another photo of the 9th Street Bridge (38C0330). At this location (in Modesto) the bridge crosses a wide flood plain that requires a 16 span river crossing. The bridge has a continuous prestressed concrete superstructure supported on two column bents. It's 2011 ft long with a 203 ft span across the river. The 9th Street bridge has four traffic lanes, wide sidewalks, and carries 24,000 vehicles a day. After 10 years of service the deck condition is rated as 'Fair.'

Stanislaus County, California Bridges: 9th Street Bridge across the Tuolumne River (2) by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Stanislaus County, California Bridges: 9th Street Bridge across the Tuolumne River (1)

September 2014 (37.6278 Degrees, -120.9876 Degrees) 9th Street Bridge

Back to the Tuolumne River and three bridges. The 16 span 9th Street Bridge (38C0330) is in the foreground. Note the groovy light standards, the segmental columns with rounded corners, and the old fashioned railing. The bridge seems to have been created in a time warp but it was actually built in 2004. In the distance is a flimsy looking railroad bridge and behind it is the previously studied 7th Street Bridge. Beyond these two bridges is a fourth bridge, the State Route 99 Bridge (38 0078) that was built in 1963. Most of the expressways in California were built in the 1960s.

Stanislaus County, California Bridges: 9th Street Bridge across the Tuolumne River (1) by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Stanislaus County California Bridges: Modesto to Empire Traction Company Bridge across Dry Creek

September 2014 (37.63634 Degrees, -120.98436 Degrees) Dry Creek Railroad Bridge

Next to the Grand Street Bridge is the Modesto and Empire Traction (MET) Company Bridge across Dry Creek.  

At the beginning of the 20th century only the Southern Pacific (SP) Railroad provided service into Modesto. The MET Company built five miles of track between Modesto and Empire (serviced by the Santa Fe Railroad) in order to compete with the SPRR in Modesto. Initially they provided passenger service but they gradually changed into a freight company. Today they own eight 2000Hp Railpower Genset locomotives along with silos and warehouses that load agricultural products on and off railroad cars.

The Dry Creek Bridge has a plate girder center span with a pinned truss underneath for extra support. The MET Company is over 100 years old and so the bridge must be about the same age. In the Google earth photo below we can see the cities of Modesto and Empire. The bridge connects the industrial park on the east side of Dry Creek to a granary on the west side of the creek.

Stanislaus County California Bridges: Modesto to Empire Traction Company Bridge across Dry Creek by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.