Garces Highway Viaduct

  • Construction Status: Completed
  • Kern, California
  • Central Region
  • Phase 1
  • Fresno to Bakersfield
  • Construction Package 4
  • Viaduct
  • Location: At Garces Highway in Kern County, about three miles west of State Route 43 near Scofield Avenue.
On Jan. 27, 2021, the California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) and design-build contractor California Rail Builders announced the completion of the Garces Highway Viaduct, north of the city of Wasco in Kern County. The viaduct, which will carry high-speed trains over Garces Highway, is the second structure completed in Construction Package 4 and the first finished in 2021.

The Garces Highway Viaduct is located three miles west of State Route 43, along Garces Highway near Scofield Avenue. The project also realigned Scofield Avenue parallel to the high-speed rail line. The viaduct spans nearly 102 feet, 4 inches in length and is 52 feet, 8 inches wide with a vertical clearance of more than 15 feet.

“Completion of the Garces Highway Viaduct is a great way to kick off another year of construction,” said Garth Fernandez, the Authority’s interim Central Valley Regional Director. “Thanks to the hard work of our construction crews, this project segment is on schedule and we expect to see several more structures completed in Kern County this year.”

Garces Highway Viaduct is part of Construction Package 4, the 22-mile stretch of high-speed rail from one mile north of the Tulare-Kern County line to Poplar Avenue in Kern County. The Authority anticipates completing all major construction in this construction package by early 2022.

Feet Long

Feet Wide

Feet at the highest point

Updates Per Project

February 27, 2020

Construction Package 4 construction crews have now poured 465 cubic yards of concrete to form the deck at the Garces Highway Viaduct. Now that the concrete is cured, crews are now working on installing post-tensioning ducts and rebar to form the structure’s stems. More concrete will be poured later in February.

November 27, 2019

At Garces Highway in Kern County, carpenters are building falsework to stabilize the deck of the Garces structure and prepare for upcoming concrete placement. This structure, located near State Route 43 and Scofield Avenue, will take high-speed trains over Garces Highway and eventually realign Scofield Avenue to become parallel to the high-speed rail alignment.

March 27, 2019

Work gets underway on abutments at what will be a high-speed rail crossing over Garces Highway, just outside the town of Wasco in Kern County. A concrete pump truck pumps concrete into the rebar filled forms. Workers direct the flow to where it needs to be to ensure coverage and also insert a vibrator into the poured concrete to eliminate air pockets.