NS Forest Avenue Bridge (Decatur)

View an article discussing the reconstruction of this line

Located on the south side of Decatur, this concrete slab bridge carries the former Wabash Railroad over Forest Avenue. Prior to the construction of this bridge, a grade crossing existed at this location. Throughout the 1920s, the Wabash began to study improvements to this line, including constructing underpasses and reconstructing the St. Louis Bridge. In May 1926, contracts were awarded for the reconstruction of the St. Louis Bridge, rebuilding the underpass at Sunset Avenue and constructing two new underpasses at Forest Avenue and Decatur Avenue. Work on the project was began later that year, and substantially completed in 1927. As part of the work, a large embankment was constructed, and the project exceeded a cost of $850,000.

The bridge at Forest Avenue consists of two 17-foot concrete encased beams, approached by an 8-foot concrete slab span on either side. These spans are set onto concrete substructures, and the bridge was constructed for two tracks. Typical of concrete bridges from this era, the bridge uses decorative features in the piers. These piers consist of concrete columns, connected by angled beams at the top. As part of the construction, a temporary runaround trestle was built immediately west of the current bridge. It is believed that the slabs for the superstructure were constructed offsite, and were installed with minimal interruption to traffic. This type of bridge was popular for grade separations, as it was durable, easy to construct and offered some visually appealing features. Concrete encased beam spans allowed for stronger and longer spans, without requiring large amounts of steel. Since the initial construction, the bridge has seen little changes. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, with no significant deterioration noted. The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.