In less than 24 hours, if the schedule holds, the first train will cross the new Sound Transit Tacoma bridge. The old 4 steel beam bridge across G street has been dismantled, along with the Milwaukee Road logos, and the new bridge has been pushed +-10’ into position. Track crews have made a connection from the old line to the new bridge at the east end (top of the image) and another crew is nearly finished at the platform area. They have just installed a temporary turnout to connect to the station platform and Tacoma Rail’s line to Frederickson. The work is slightly ahead of schedule and commuter service is expected to resume by Tuesday 2/21/2017 in the afternoon.
Also under construction, just barely visible in the Freighthouse Square buildings, is a new Passenger station just under construction. All passenger trains through Tacoma will move to this station and the new Bypass-Bypass route some time in 2017. Once the concrete bridge is complete as a single track structure, the wooden trestle will be razed and the second half of the concrete structure built. The end result will be a two track bridge.
