The Arizona sentinel., 1905-05-10
THE NEW TEMPE BRIDGE
RandoIph's Activity.
fPhoenix GazetteI

OnclalS OF the MdflcOpa anO
Phoenix railroad inform the Ga.
zatte that the much talked of,
long hoped for and long prom
Used permanent bridge over the
Salt river at Tempe will soon be
q reality. The material for the
structure is nearly all on the
ground now, and actual work on
the big structure is being carried
on with the utmost dispatch.
Colonel Randolph, president
of the NJ. and P, is deserving of
very great praise for the able
manner in which the prelimina-
ries have been looked after, and
it is to his credit also that the
early completion of the bridge
is to be placed. The colonel says
that work on the structure will
be pushed with all possible speed
and nothing will be allowed to
interfere with its progress.
1t is not generally realized,
perhaps, what great benefit a
permanent structure of the kind
proposed by the railroad people
will be to Phoenix and the val
ley. It will mean that there will
be no more intervals Of days
when this city will be absolutely
without any rail communication
with the outside world, such as
has been the case several times
during the present winter
months owing to the high water
in this vicinity.
Colonel Randolph says that on
the completion of the new bridge
the future possibility of Phoenix
being marooned in a lake of wa
ter, as it were, will be reduced
to minimum, as there can be
question of its being able TO
withstand any flood waters that
are likely to come down the Salt.
Railroad men and engineers
who have seen the plans for the
bridge declare it will be one of
the handsomest and safest strnc-
lures of the kind in the south
west and we'll able to withstand |
anything in the shape of storms
and heavy traffic that it is likely
to be subjected to.
Special stress is put upon the
fact by railroad men of there be-
ing no speed limit put upon the
bridge, all trains being priv
leged to run across it at any
speed they may see fit, up to and |
including sixty miles an hour.
This is said to be the case with |
but few railroad bridges in the
country and with scarcely none
throughout the west, and is but
another Illustration of the build
ers' confidence in the stability of
the bridge and its perfection in
the matter of standing against
any freak Of the clements.
The total length of the bridge
will be 1905 feet, consisting of
335 feet of trestle approach and
1870 feet of steel bridge. SThe
steel bridge consists of two 100
foot spans, five 15O-foot spans
and two 160-foot spans. The
total weight of metal in the steel
spans is approximately 1900
tons. These spans are designed
TO stand a moving load of two
consolidation engines welghingk
162 tons each, connected solid by
uniformly distributed trainloads
of 4, 200 pounds per linear foot.
The snb-stracture consists of ten
steel cylinder piers built in pairs.
These cylinders are eight feet in
diameter and from thirty to
forty-five feet in height, and are
connected at the top with steel
diaphragm. These cylinders are
sunk to depth of between IF
teen and twenty feet below the
bed of the river. Inside of the
cylinder piles are driven to
depth of from fifteen to twenty
FIVE feet below the bottom of the
cylinders. After the piles are
driven the cylinders are then
filed with solid mass of con-
crete, and on top of the cylinders
Is placed a granite stone of the
same diameter as the cylinders,
this stone forming the bridge
seat for the steel spans.