Mystic River Railroad Bridge (Connecticut)

Mystic River Railroad Bridge

Mystic River Railroad Bridge in August 2010
Coordinates 41°20′56″N 71°58′13″W / 41.34889°N 71.97028°W / 41.34889; -71.97028Coordinates: 41°20′56″N 71°58′13″W / 41.34889°N 71.97028°W / 41.34889; -71.97028
Carries Northeast Corridor
Crosses Mystic River
Locale Groton and Stonington, Connecticut
Official name Mystic River Bridge
Maintained by Amtrak
Characteristics
Design Swing bridge
Material Steel
History
Opened 1819 (First bridge), 1875 (Second bridge), 1984 (Third Bridge)

The Mystic River Railroad Bridge is a railroad bridge carrying Amtrak's Northeast Corridor over the Mystic River in Mystic, Connecticut, between the towns of Groton and Stonington.

There have been three bridges at this location. The first bridge was a single-tracked, wooden drawbridge in 1819, which was replaced with a steel swing bridge in 1875.[1]

The current bridge was built in 1984, and is a truss-style swing bridge, providing 13 feet (4.0 m) of vertical clearance when closed.[2]

The two tracks running over the bridge are owned by Amtrak, are part of it's Northeast Corridor route, and are used to operate its Northeast Regional and Acela Express services. There is a proposal, however, to extend Shore Line East Commuter Rail Service from its current terminus in New London to Mystic, which would require crossing this bridge.

The bridge is the easternmost drawbridge on the Amtrak-owned Northeast Corridor in Connecticut.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Artemel, Janice G. (1983). "New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad, Mystic River Bridge" (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  2. ↑ http://www.mysticseaport.org/research/
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