TriMet begins next major construction phase of Milwaukie-Portland light-rail bridge

The Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District (TriMet) reached a milestone yesterday in the Portland-Milwaukie light-rail transit bridge construction project when the bridge contractor cast the first of 78 concrete segments for the deck.

Kiewit Infrastructure West is building the bridge over the Willamette River in Portland, Ore.

Two concrete form travelers have been erected at each end of the west bridge tower. Each form traveler will support 200 tons of concrete to be cast into a 16-foot-long by 75-foot-long segment that will make up the future roadway, TriMet officials said in a press release.

The light-rail bridge is the first bridge to be built over the river in Portland in more than 40 years, they said. It will be a cable-stayed bridge and extend 1,720 feet over the river. When completed, it will accommodate light rail, buses, bikes, pedestrians and a future Portland Streetcar extension.

The 7.3-mile Portland-Milwaukie light-rail line will extend from the terminus of the MAX Green and Yellow lines at Portland State University in downtown Portland to South Waterfront, Southeast Portland, Milwaukie and North Clackamas County.