Merchant Street Bridge Project Norfolk Southern Bridge PC-1.20 over Merchant Street Online Public Meeting July 27 – August 26, 2020 PROJECT TEAM • Norfolk Southern Railway Company (NSR) • Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) • Michael Baker International
Direct project questions to: [email protected] or Rudy Husband 412.893.7041 PROJECT OVERVIEW • The Merchant Street Bridge Project is a stand-alone, on-alignment bridge replacement project involving Norfolk Southern Bridge PC-1.20 over Merchant Street in the City of Pittsburgh's North Side. • The Merchant Street Bridge was constructed in 1905 by the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne, and Chicago division of the Pennsylvania Railroad. • This presentation allows for coordination with the public to obtain feedback on the Merchant Street Bridge Project and to meet Pennsylvania Act 120 and Pennsylvania History Code requirements for state-funded transportation projects. • The Merchant Street Bridge Project is being partially funded by a PennDOT grant; it is separate and distinct from the Pittsburgh Vertical Clearance Projects. • Any comments relating to the Pittsburgh Vertical Clearance Projects will be addressed as appropriate as part of the public involvement process for those projects. PROJECT LOCATION MAP
Project Location PROJECT LOCATION MAP PROJECT PURPOSE • The purpose of the Merchant Street Bridge Project is to maintain safe freight and passenger rail operations along the Fort Wayne Line to continue the efficient transportation of goods and people between Chicago and the New York/New Jersey commercial markets. • The bridge structure has reached the end of its useful life and engineering inspections have identified a need to address these problems in order to maintain safe interstate rail transportation along the Fort Wayne Line. • The bridge carrying the Fort Wayne Line over Merchant Street has safety deficiencies that have the potential to create risks to current rail traffic and forecasted rail traffic increases throughout the United States and within Pennsylvania and the Pittsburgh region. PROJECT NEED Safety and reliability: • Address deteriorated condition caused by extensive steel corrosion in cross-girders, columns, and riveted trough structure. • The superstructure’s poor condition may pose a safety hazard to the railroad and traveling public. • Failures could lead to interruption of roadway and railroad transportation. Facility deficiencies: • Limit disruptions to interstate rail traffic and minimize future maintenance costs and by improving the structural deficiencies of the Merchant Street Bridge. PROJECT REQUIREMENTS • Railroad operations will remain in service throughout construction except for necessary specific outages arranged in advance. • Construction will require closure of Merchant Street to all vehicular and pedestrian traffic; the detour routes will be in place for 6-8 months. • Overhead bridge work must be completed before all other work is initiated. • Provide 11’-3” of vertical clearance for the roadway under the bridge for the safe passage of emergency vehicles and buses. • Minimize project effects on historic properties. EXISTING BRIDGE
• Two-span superstructure consists of two, skewed, built-up, riveted steel through girders with a ballast-deck composed of a riveted steel trough floor system. • Varies in length from about 55' to 62' along the skew and varies in width from about 116' to 124'. • Substructure consists of sandstone masonry abutments and one intermediate steel multi-column bent. • The steel bent is comprised of six riveted, built-up cross-girders and seven built-up columns, with riveted lattice bracing, set on granite pedestal blocks.
Note: Marion Avenue renamed to Merchant Street. EXISTING BRIDGE
View of south side of bridge from Merchant Street. EXISTING BRIDGE
View of north side of bridge from Merchant Street. Note: The utility bridge in the foreground will remain in place and is not part of the project. View of north side of the bridge, retaining wall, and Allegheny Commons from Merchant Street. EXISTING BRIDGE
View of Merchant Street under existing bridge showing steel bent and east abutment. View of Merchant Street sidewalk under existing bridge. PROJECT DESCRIPTION On-alignment replacement of Norfolk Southern Bridge PC-1.20 over Merchant Street. • Railway project limits: 55’ • Replace the steel superstructure • Remove existing superstructure, steel column bent, and bent foundation • Construct new single span, welded steel, through-girder and rolled I-beam superstructure • Modify abutments with new concrete bridge seats and backwalls • Roadway project limits: 650’ along Merchant Street • Lower road profile to increase roadway vertical clearance to 11’-3” • Drainage and utility upgrades on Merchant Street within project limits • Sidewalk/roadway replacement • Installation of street and underdeck lighting Pennsylvania Ave. OH UNDERCUT TIE IN * NSR has not determined if track lowering is feasible. PC-2.165 PC-1.844 Sta. 60+38TRACK ELEVATIONSSta. 43+59 Elev. 758.09’ Elev. 750.302’ UNDERCUT AT EXISTING PENNSYLVANIA AVE. PC-1.844 North Ave. OH TOP-OF-RAIL Sta. 43+59 PC-1.619 ELEVATIONS Elev. 747.54’ Sta. 31.+98 (red) Elev. 744.499’ POTENTIAL TRACK UNDERCUT AT NORTH UNDERCUT ZONE* (LOW POINT) TOP-OF-RAIL PC-1.619 ELEVATIONS Sta. 31+98 Elev. 741.00’ (blue)
UNDERCUT TIE IN W. Ohio St. OH PC-1.394 PC-1.346 Sta. 20+38 Elev. 744.53’ Merchant St. UG PC-1.193 Exhibit Depicting Potential Top-of-Rail Elevations for Nearby Projects Milepost Sta. 9+99 Any potential track lowering changes that may occur from other nearby PC-1.0 Elev. 748.705’ bridge projects, including the separate Pittsburgh Vertical Clearance Sta. 0+00 Elev. 751.731’ Projects, will not affect the Merchant Street Bridge Project PROJECT PLANS PROJECT PLANS TYPICAL SECTIONS
The typical section will be described in more detail on the next slides. ADVISORY BIKE LANES • An advisory bicycle lane, or ABL, is a roadway striping configuration that provides for two-way motor vehicle and non-motorized traffic using a center lane and “advisory” or edge lanes on either side. • The center lane is dedicated to and shared by motorists traveling in both directions. Vulnerable road users (VRUs), such as cyclists or pedestrians, have right-of-way in the edge lanes but motorists can use the edge lanes, after yielding to the VRUs there, to pass oncoming vehicles. • This roadway configuration originated in the Netherlands over 50 years ago and has been used on many hundreds of road-kilometers in the Netherlands alone. The ABL concept has worked well in many countries and in cities across the United States. Courtesy of FHWA: https://www.advisorybikelanes.com/ ADVISORY BIKE LANES – EXAMPLES
Courtesy of FHWA: https://www.advisory bikelanes.com/ PROJECT QUICK FACTS
EXISTING CONDITIONS PROPOSED PROJECT • 2 span bridge • Single span bridge (pier removed) • Face to Face of Abutment Length: 35’ • Face to Face of Abutment Length: 35’ • Bridge Width: Varies 116-124' • Bridge Width: 110' • 4 tracks carried on bridge • 4 tracks carried on bridge • 2 - 11’-6" lanes (23’ width) with • 1 - 11’-6" bi-directional lane with 2 - 5’- bicycle "sharrow" markings 9" advisory bike lanes (23’ width) • Sidewalk varies 4’-6" to 9’ • Sidewalk varies 6’ to 10’ • Existing roadway vertical clearance • Proposed roadway vertical clearance 9’-0” 11-3” • Improved lighting PROJECT RENDERING PROJECT RENDERING MERCHANT STREET VEHICULAR DETOUR
Vehicle Detour: 0.9 Miles - Shown in red - 5 Minute trip
2.4 Miles - Shown in blue - 8 min trip time MERCHANT STREET PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE DETOUR
Pedestrian and Bicycle Detour: 1.0 Mile - 17-minute trip time walking - 6-minute trip time bicycling NOISE AND AIR QUALITY • The Merchant Street Bridge Project would not result in any significant effect on noise and air quality. • The on-alignment replacement of the Merchant Street Bridge would not significantly affect air emissions except for the minor temporary emissions relating to construction equipment. • An on-alignment replacement of a bridge with one of identical capacity is not something that would change the noise-generating source; therefore, the Merchant Street Bridge Project will not significantly change the noise levels relative to the existing condition. • The Merchant Street Bridge HISTORIC PROPERTIES contributes to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP)-eligible Pennsylvania Railroad: Main Line (Pittsburgh to Ohio State Line) Railroad Corridor Historic District, which is significant under NRHP Criteria A and C in the areas of transportation, economy, and the development of Pennsylvania’s industries and communities.
• Allegheny Commons Historic District is listed in the NRHP under Criterion A in the area of Community Planning and Development and under Criterion C in the area of Landscape Merchant Street, May 22, 1931 Architecture. Allegheny Commons is the oldest public park in Pittsburgh and the city’s only formal urban park. PROJECT EFFECTS ON HISTORIC PROPERTIES • The bridge replacement project will adversely affect the Pennsylvania Railroad: Main Line (Pittsburgh to Ohio State Line) Railroad Corridor Historic District because of the demolition of the Merchant Street Bridge. • The project will not adversely affect Allegheny Commons Historic District. If temporary construction easements are needed for project access, the land will be restored to its original condition after construction. • In compliance with Pennsylvania’s History Code, NSR and PennDOT will continue to meet with consulting parties to develop appropriate measures to minimize and mitigate adverse effects on the Pennsylvania Railroad: Main Line (Pittsburgh to Ohio State Line) Railroad Corridor Historic District. PROPOSED SCHEDULE Environmental Compliance • Complete Consulting Party Process (Estimated Fall 2020) • Submit Environmental Document (Fall/Winter 2020) • Anticipated Approval – Winter 2020/2021
Construction • Begin - Spring 2021 • Anticipated Completion - Fall 2021 COMMENT FORM Please complete the comment form at the link on the website in order to provide feedback regarding the Merchant Street Bridge Project.
http://www.nscorp.com/content/nscorp/en/in-your-community/the- pittsburgh-vertical-clearance-projects/public-involvement-process-- merchant-street-bridge-project--.html
The comment form will be available from July 27 through August 26, 2020.
Note: Any comments related to the Pittsburgh Vertical Clearance Projects will be addressed as part of the Pittsburgh Vertical Clearance Projects’ public involvement process.