Getting around in the Santa Fe Springs area has become much easier with the opening of a bridge that is the main part of a crucial $156 million road and rail grade-separation project.

The Rosecrans Avenue bridge over a set of railroad tracks and another local street called Marquardt opened in mid-January, putting an end to one of the most dangerous at-grade road and rail crossings in California.

Rosecrans is a vital east-west artery that is frequently used by trucks and other commercial vehicles. 

The railroad lines serve freight traffic for Fort Worth, Texas-based Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Co., as well as some passenger rail service.

The at-grade crossing had generally seen an estimated 45,000 vehicles and 135 trains per day. From 2013 through 2019, the California Public Utilities Commission recorded 31 incidents, with six fatalities and seven injuries. 

The fix was to build a bridge for Rosecrans to cross over the railroad tracks and construct a set of connector roads to allow north-south traffic on Marquardt to easily navigate the rail crossing without hitting the tracks. 

But it took more than a decade of planning and securing funds before ground was broken in mid-2022. Flatiron Construction, a subsidiary of Essen, Germany-based construction giant Hochtief, was selected as the prime contractor.

“This project is long overdue for our Southeast L.A. communities and will once and for all solve a major safety concern that we’ve had in our backyards for years,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor and Metro First Vice Chair Janice Hahn. 

It will take another year for the overall project to wrap up.