San Diego County’s North Coast Corridor Project, Segment 7 – Batiquitos Lagoon Double Track, reached a key milestone with the successful installation of precast concrete girders for the new bridge over the lagoon.

The project replaces a wooden trestle bridge built in the 1940s and adds 0.6 miles of second rail track between La Costa Avenue in Encinitas and Avenida Encinas in Carlsbad in California. The double tracking will improve reliability and capacity along this busy section of the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo rail corridor.

A 60-ton precast concrete girder is lowered into place in the formation of the new trestle.

Each girder, weighing approximately 120,000 pounds, was placed using a 500-ton crane, mobilized on a temporary wooden trestle bridge designed and built by the project team.

Thanks to extensive coordination, pre-planning, and precise execution, crews were able to complete this complex work while trains continued operating on the existing track next to the new bridge.

Construction of the new double-track trestle did not impede commuter rail service, as illustrated by the Coaster rolling by the construction site.

Upon completion, the project will enhance passenger and freight services while improving the resilience of coastal rail infrastructure in San Diego County.