Burlington Rail Bridge

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Burlington Rail Bridge
Carries	Double track rail line
Crosses	Mississippi River
Locale	Burlington, Iowa and Illinois
Maintained by	BNSF Railway
Design	6 truss spans and one swing-span
Opening date	1893
Coordinates	40°47′55″N, 91°05′31″W

The Burlington Bridge carries a double tracked rail lines across the Mississippi River between Burlington, Iowa and Illinois. The bridge is currently owned by BNSF Railway as part of its Chicago to Denver mainline. It is somewhat controversial in that its swing-span only allows one barge to pass at a time and the US Coast Guard has declared it a navigational hazard. The bridge is planned to be replaced with a vertical lift bridge to double the width of the navigational channel once about $40 million is appropriated.[1] As of 2005, around half of the estimate has been approved. Amtrak's California Zephyr crosses this bridge. The original bridge at this location was constructed in 1868. It was reconstructed in 1893 in its current form.

[edit] See also

• List of crossings of the Upper Mississippi River

[edit] External links

• Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress) Survey number HAER IA-20
• Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress) - Survey number HAER NE-2. 500+ data pages discuss Chief Engineer George S. Morrison and many of his bridges including this bridge.
• RiverWeb

The Burlington Rail Bridge

Bridges of the Mississippi River
Upstream Great River Bridge	Burlington Rail Bridge	Downstream Fort Madison Toll Bridge