San Gabriel trench named transportation project of the year

The California Transportation Foundation named the San Gabriel trench as the Project of the Year out of more than 60 nominations at its 30th Annual Transportation Awards.

The $293.7 million project resulted in the lowering of a 1.4-mile section of railroad track in a 30-foot-deep, 65-foot-wide trench through San Gabriel, California. Roadway bridges were constructed at four hazardous at-grade crossings and railroad bridges were built over two storm channels, according to a San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments (SGVCOG) press release.

The project was the largest public works effort in the history of San Gabriel and the largest project in the $1.7 billion Alameda Corridor-East (ACE) grade separation program overseen by the Capital Projects and Construction Committee of SGVCOG.

“It was a challenging project and we are proud of the efforts made to overcome the hurdles and deliver the project under budget and within four years of construction,” said Mark Christoffels, chief engineer of SGVCOG.

Construction required the excavation of more than 500,000 cubic yards of soil removed via 33,000 dump truck trips and the pouring of 6,500 truckloads of concrete to build the trench walls and floor and roadway bridge structures.  

The trench was built to improve safety by eliminating the potential for crossing collisions, delays for nearly 90,000 motorists each day, reduces emissions from idling vehicles and allows emergency responders to respond more quickly on both sides of the tracks.

Jacobs Engineering served as construction manager on the project, Walsh Construction was the general contractor, Moffatt & Nichol was the lead designer, SWCA was the archaeological and cultural resources consultant, Paragon Partners provided right-of-way services, Lee Andrews Group provided community outreach services, and the city of San Gabriel and Union Pacific Railroad were project partners.