Colfax Avenue Bridge Replacement Project

The Colfax Avenue Bridge replacement was part of a citywide bridge rehabilitation and replacement program for the City of Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering. As Prime Consultant, TYLin led a multi-discipline team to provide preliminary and final design services for the new signature bridge, which included environmental clearance, bridge and approach design, permitting, and preparing plans, specifications, and estimates.  

Located on Colfax Avenue at the Los Angeles River crossing in the Studio City neighborhood, the existing bridge was a steel deck truss with a concrete-filled steel grid deck. Measuring 303 feet long with a main span of 256 feet, the 2-lane bridge was significantly narrower than the street approaches, making it eligible for widening under the federal Highway Bridge Program. 

Initial studies determined it would be difficult and costly to widen the truss structure, so approval was granted to replace the bridge. TYLin participated in extensive public outreach to obtain consensus on the replacement structure type, a process that included producing state-of-the-art renderings of cable-stayed, through arch, and box girder types. The preferred solution for the bridge was a variable-depth concrete box girder with slant-leg piers, giving it an elegant “arch appearance.”  

Since construction of the replacement bridge required closure of Colfax Avenue at the river crossing for close to a year, the project involved a detailed traffic study, development of a detour plan, and the design of improvements to several intersections on the detour route to mitigate hardships on the travelling public. 

Project Highlights: