Amtrak Susquehanna River Bridge
NBI Information
Location
State: Maryland
County: Harford County
Feature Carried: Amtrack’s Northeast Corridor
Feature Crossed: Susquehanna River
Latitude, Longitude: 39.5544, -76.0860
Structure Open, Posted, or Closed to Traffic: Private Railroad Bridge
History
Year Built: 1906
Picture Date: May 6, 2023
Geometry
Lanes on Structure: 1
Lanes under Structure: 0
Number of Main Spans: 1
Main Structure Type: Movable - Swing
Main Structure Material: Metal
Approach Span Type: Truss - Deck
Approach Span Material: Steel
Condition
Bridge is not on the National Bridge Inventory
Bridge Information
The Amtrak Susquehanna River Bridge is a swing bridge that carries Amtrack’s Northeast Corridor over the Susquehanna River. It was built in 1906. The approach spans are Pratt deck trusses, and the swing span is a Howe through truss. This bridge is the longest movable bridge on the Northeast corridor, although the swing span rarely operates. It underwent major rehabilitation projects in the 1960’s, 1985, 1991, and 1998.
The previous bridge was opened in 1866, and was a wooden, single-track, railroad bridge, located just south of the current bridge. Although the superstructure was demolished, the masonry substructure is still visible in the river.
The future of this bridge is very limited. In 2017, Amtrack identified replacement of this bridge as one of their “Ready to Build” projects. The new structure will be two parallel bridges in the footprint of both the original 1866 bridge and the current bridge. The approach spans will be steel plate girder spans, and the main span will be a network tied arch span. The clearance will be increased to remove the need for a movable span, which means the approaches will be much longer to maintain allowable track grades. Amtrak awarded three construction contracts for the Susquehanna River Rail Bridge Replacement Program in December of 2023. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2025.
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