Mississippi River Bridge

RRJ was retained by the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) to help assess whether this landmarked, century-old bridge could support use by an unusually heavy type of coal freight train.

RRJ’s field testing program provided BNSF with a higher level of stress level accuracy and reliability than possible with analytical methods alone.  The testing provided reliable stress ranges to evaluate fatigue and fatigue life of the affected components of the bridge. It helped the BNSF optimize maintenance of the bridge that remains a highly functioning transportation link.

How RRJ helped

• Develop diagnostic load components program
• Develop stress ranges
• Calculate fatigue life