Light Rail Bridge~Tempe Town Lake~

Project Highlights: Context Sensitive Solutions and public involvement program Special LED lighting system that allows programmers to create a variety of effects ranging from lights chasing trains across the bridge to patriotic red, white and blue light displays and more complex shows Completed in 2006, the bridge is an innovative continuous 11-span, triangular steel truss supporting each track with a 30 foot wide concrete deck featuring a cast-in-place, seven-inch-thick 5,000-psi reinforced concrete. From the waterline to near the bridge deck, diagonal lines dominate. V-shaped pier caps rise to meet steel trusses that feature diagonal pipe bracing connecting top and bottom pipe chords.

The new design borrows from the old rail bridge but adds modern touches that no one could have imagined in 1912. The relative shallow superstructure blends well with the existing roadway and railroad bridge structures and provides the City of Tempe with an iconic gateway that complements its setting. The innovative design also includes integral LED structure lighting that is activated by the trains crossing the structure.
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