Bridges

In order to restore the historic Longfellow Bridge, the Massachusetts Highway Department and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation are heading up a federally funded project to repair the structure’s deterioration and improve its ramped approaches.  In addition to providing two-way vehicular, pedestrian, and bicycle access across the river; the bridge carries the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s (MBTA’s) Red Line.

Nitsch Engineering provided surveying services on the project’s preliminary design team. We performed extensive topographic surveys for the entire length (2,135 feet) of the bridge and its approaches, extending 500 feet in each direction. Nitsch Engineering also provided deed and plan research at the Suffolk and Middlesex Registries of Deeds and other agencies in order to retrace the right-of-way lines for the bridge, abutting roadways, and the MBTA; pierhead and bulkhead lines; and the City line between Boston and Cambridge. We performed an extensive track survey for the relocation and improvement of the MBTA Red Line, in which we will locate features such as the tracks, insulated joints, switches, junction boxes, and utilities. We also supervised the hydrographic survey of a portion of the Charles River.

Nitsch Engineering provided land surveying services for the renovation and restoration of the Boston University Bridge deck.  Originally called the Cottage Farm Bridge, the bridge was built in 1928 and was renamed the Boston University (B.U.) Bridge in 1949.  The bridge extends over the Charles River, offering a connection between Boston and Cambridge, and crosses over Storrow Drive and the CSX Grand Junction Railroad.  Nitsch Engineering performed a topographic and utility survey that included portions of the Charles River, which lies about 32 feet below the deck.  The survey included the clearance between the bridge arch and Storrow Drive, the bridge deck and adjacent roadways, utilities on adjacent land parcels, and the alignment and clearances between the B.U. Bridge and the CSX railroad bridge that runs under it (which also spans the Charles River).  We located the abutments on the Boston side and the adjacent banks of the Charles River to provide topographic data for drainage design.  Since the bridge has several different types of walls and structural elements, survey drafting required special attention to detail.

Nitsch Engineering is currently providing land surveying services for the improvement of service and greater utilization of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Fairmount Branch. The Fairmount Branch currently travels 9.1 miles between South Station in Boston and its Readville terminus.  The project will update the corridor with new and/or improved stations, tracks, and bridge crossings.
 

In addition to providing new project-specific mapping from aerial photography for approximately 7.4 miles of the corridor, Nitsch Engineering is providing bridge surveys to accommodate the design changes along the corridor.  Some bridges will be replaced, while others will be re-decked to accommodate new track alignments and/or stations.  In order to provide the designers with the data necessary to replace or renovate the aging structures, Nitsch Engineering is providing a detailed survey of the bridges that have granite abutments, including elevations, stone alignments, material types, and placement of beams, rails, and seats.

Nitsch Engineering provided land surveying services for the $10-million rehabilitation design of the Great River Bridge over the Westfield River. The project includes renovating the bridge deck on the existing bridge, as well as constructing a new, 400-foot “sister” bridge.  In conjunction with the new bridge design, the City of Westfield is designing a new riverfront park and traffic flow pattern.  Nitsch Engineering performed a topographic survey of the immediate 20-acre area around the Great River Bridge, including the Westfield River, the CSX railroad bridge over Route 202 (North Elm Street), and a historically-significant bridge over the Pioneer Valley Railroad along Pochaissic Street.  We surveyed the bridge deck of the existing Great River Bridge to help designers with widening the deck, and provided more detailed surveys of the CSX railroad bridge and the Pochaissic Street bridge to allow for more extensive design (including the expansion of the clearance between the roadways and the CSX railroad bridge).  For the construction of the new “sister” bridge, Nitsch Engineering incorporated hydrographic, GPS, property line, utility, and railroad alignment surveys; prepared preliminary right-of-way plans, letter takings, layout plans, and the order of taking; and evaluated existing utilities. The project included numerous reviews by the City of Westfield and its residents, as well as coordination with State agencies, as there were historical concerns that needed to be balanced with modern needs.