BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — The seventh high-speed rail structure, located just south of Wasco, has been completed, the California High-Speed Rail Authority announced Wednesday.
The Merced Avenue overcrossing and grade separation located on Highway 43 is now open to traffic. The grade separation spans 509 feet, stretches 43 feet wide and takes traffic over Highway 43. It will also be used for BNSF rail cars and future High-speed rail lines, according to the Authority.
The Merced Avenue overcrossing is the third structure to be completed in Kern County in a month and exemplifies the progress we continue to make. This is thanks to the more than 1,300 workers dispatched every day all across the Central Valley bringing the first electrified high-speed rail system to California.
Garth Fernandez, Central Valley Regional Director.
Construction of the Merced Avenue project began in 2020. Since then, the Authority has also completed two high-speed rail projects in Kern County: The first, Poso Avenue underpass south of Wasco, and the McCombs Road grade separation located north of Wasco, officials said.
There are currently 30 active construction sites in the Golden State’s Central Valley. So far, the Authority has cleared 422 miles of the high-speed rail program from the Bay Area to the Los Angeles Basin.
