H&H is serving as the overall structural design lead for the Long Bridge project and designing the new two-track rail bridge over the Potomac River and the Virginia rail bridge spanning the George Washington Memorial Parkway. The Virginia Department of Rail & Public Transportation project will address freight and passenger traffic challenges and include eight new rail bridges and two new pedestrian bridges while creating an approximately 1.8 miles mixed-use rail corridor with a four-track capacity between Arlington, VA, and Washington, DC.
H&H is also providing geotechnical engineering and foundation design, scour analysis, track design support, permitting support, survey coordination, specification writing, constructability, and sequencing for the preparation of preliminary engineering documents.
The existing Long Bridge is a two-track railroad bridge over the Potomac River constructed in 1904 and is owned and operated by CSX Transportation (CSXT). The Long Bridge is currently utilized by Amtrak, Virginia Railway Express (VRE), and CSXT freight trains. The bridge is an essential link between the northeast and southeast rail networks along the Eastern Seaboard.
As a two-track crossing with three tracks approaching from each end, the current bridge creates a bottleneck for freight and passenger traffic and cannot support the projected increase in rail traffic. Future demand will require expanded infrastructure to provide additional capacity, allowing passenger, commuter, and freight rail services to be improved, facilitating economic growth, and improving mobility throughout the Eastern Seaboard.
Existing Bridge Cover Photo Credit: Jeffrey W. Comer
Additional Photos Credit: Timothy Kennedy and Monika Bhagat-Kennedy
