ACE celebrates completion of Baldwin Avenue grade separation

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor
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LACMTA

Alameda Corridor-East Construction Authority (ACE) completed major construction on a four-lane roadway underpass and a two-track railroad bridge carrying freight trains over Baldwin Avenue, north of Valley Boulevard in the City of El Monte, Calif.

 

To construct the Baldwin Avenue grade separation project, workers used 1 million pounds of reinforcing steel, poured 12,000 cubic yards of concrete and excavated 93,000 cubic yards of dirt, enough to fill 11,600 dump trucks. The $76.7-million project was funded in partnership by federal and state agencies, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) and Union Pacific. More than two years of construction, 446 construction workers were employed, with 11 percent of construction costs subcontracted to small businesses.

Located on the transcontinental ACE Trade Corridor, the highway-rail grade separation is used daily by 18 freight trains, projected to increase to 40 trains by 2025 and to 59 trains if the route is double-tracked by the railroad. Once opened to traffic next month, the underpass will accommodate 28,000 vehicles a day.

“Goods movement is crucial to our regional economy and projects like the Baldwin Avenue grade separation increase reliability and safety for freight trains and road users alike,” Los Angeles Mayor and LACMTA Board Chair Eric Garcetti said in a statement. “This project is another example of how we put our sales tax funds to work for the benefit of the entire region.”

 

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