Benicia-Martinez Railroad Bridge

After sketching some Bay Area railroad ferry history, I wanted to sketch the 1930 railroad bridge that killed off the ferry between Benicia and Port Costa.

As rail traffic increased (both passenger and freight) and the rail ferries aged and needed repair or replacement, this caused more delays on the Overland Route (not to mention delays caused by fog). Southern Pacific looked into building another ferry but soon realized that a rail bridge spanning the strait was the best solution.

The railroad bridge was built for Southern Pacific Railroad between the years 1928 to 1930.

The bridge is impressive because it is the second longest railroad bridge (5,603 ft 6in long) in the country and the longest west of the Mississippi.

The railroad bridge is now flanked to two automobile bridges that cross the Carquinez Strait. One span was built in 1962 while the other completed in 2007.

The longest railroad bridge west of the Mississippi.

Because the bridge is relatively low to the water, 70 feet in fact, a midsection is a drawbridge that allows tall ships to pass through the strait. When the drawbridge is opened, it gives passing ships 135 feet of clearance.

Five locomotives are on point of this Union Pacific westbound mixed consist freight as it comes onto the bridge. This long freight train would take quite a few ferry passages to shuttle across the strait before the bridge was built in 1930. Modern freight trains can be one to two miles long.
There were quite a few car carriers on the consist. The area on the Benicia side is new car transfer point.

Foamer at the Bridge

On a Sunday morning I headed up to the northern side of the Benicia- Martinez Railroad Bridge to the vista point, flanked by the two road bridges, to watch some trains transit the historic bridge.

The view southeast from Vista Point. The railroad bridge is in the middle. The newer road bridge (2007) is on the left, the other (1962) is on the right.
A northbound Capital Corridor train number 720 crossing the bridge. This trains’s final destination is Sacramento.
The good thing about the Vista Point is that you can see northbound trains approaching across the Carquinez Strait like California Zephyr train number 6 running three minutes late. Once the train departs Martinez it will cross the bridge about four minutes later.
California Zephyr Number 6 crossing the bridge. Next stop Davis.
I have yet to cross the bridge on the Zephyr as I usually board the train further north in Colfax.

2 thoughts on “Benicia-Martinez Railroad Bridge”

  1. excellent piece. Gorgeous sketch!

    I have taken the California Zephyr Amtrak journey from Emeryville to Denver, round trip, multiple times… Business and pleasure.

    I have also taken that train all the way from Chicago to Emeryville. We do have the coolest bridges here! Thank you.

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