Old Railroad Bridge Over the Charles River - Needham-Newton MA - Railroad Bridges on Waymarking.com

In Needham, over the Charles River and bordering Newton, is this former railroad bridge.

The bridge is located between the Highland Avenue Bridge to the north and the Kendrick Street Bridge to the south. The best access is from the Blue Heron Trail, which you can pick up from either Highland Avenue or from Kendrick Street. North of a residence is a T intersection where the old railroad right of way meets it. From there, walk the short distance to the path. I was able to walk on the bridge with no issues. I did not see any fencing from this end. The other end does have fencing and ends at a parking lot. Do be mindful of your footing, however, as the surface is uneven and there no railing on the upstream side of the bridge.

The bridge is an unusual design. It has reinforced concrete decking with hollow iron posts supporting the decking. The deck has a raised portion and iron railings on the downstream side (north). Five sets of steel posts support the deck. There are Four per set; the extreme posts are angled.

The railroad looks like a spur that came from the former industrial park to the west. I'm not sure how far the spur went into Newton as there is no evidence of the railroad bed on that side of the river. Wikipedia has an entry for this bridge as one of the crossings over the Charles River. However, there is little information on the site.

Source:

Wikipedia (List of Crossings Of the Charles River):
(visit link)

Bridge Type: Rigid Frame (Concrete Deck and Supports) Bridge Usage: Pedestrian Moving Bridge: This bridge is static (has no moving pieces)

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