PHOTO RELEASE: Heavy Construction Starts in Kern County for Construction Package 4

Mar 15 2018 | Kern County

KERN COUNTY, Calif.– This week, construction crews are beginning foundation work for a bridge that will carry high-speed trains over Garces Highway in Kern County – marking the first significant construction activity for Construction Package 4 (CP 4). Drill rigs and heavy machinery have been mobilized to the site at Garces Highway near Scofield Avenue where workers have begun drilling shafts 80-feet into the ground. Rebar cages are also being lowered into the shafts and covered with concrete.

Construction of the bridge is being done by design-builder, California Rail Builders (CRB) as part of CP 4, the 22-mile segment between one-mile north of the Tulare-Kern County line and Poplar Avenue. The Garces Bridge will be approximately 102-feet in length, 52-feet wide, with abutments at each end of the structure, and vertical clearance of just over 15 feet. Garces Highway will remain at-grade, and Scofield Avenue will be realigned to become parallel to the high-speed rail alignment.

The California High-Speed Rail Authority and CRB are committed to reaching small business participation goals and are working collaboratively with local union halls to utilize the workforce in the Central Valley. CRB has contracted with several small businesses to work on the Garces Bridge, which include: CVE Demolition, Alliance Ready Mix Inc., Hughes Construction and Associated Traffic Safety. To date, 142 workers have been dispatched to work on the CP 4 project, 99 of those workers reside in Kern County.

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