Rainbow Bridge, Texas

Project Description

About the Bridge: The Rainbow Bridge in Texas is spans the shores of the Neches River. It was completed in 1938 and is the tallest bridge on the Gulf Coast. It rises to a height of a 20-story building and clears the river by 177 feet.  It features a cantilever through-truss system, easily identifiable by its location of traffic deck that is carried along the bottom cord and trusses that are located on either side of the bridge and connected by cross-bracing at their tops. In 1994, The Rainbow Bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was also listed on MPS list under Historic Bridges of Texas entry.

Project Scope:  Saffo was awarded the project in January of 2015 to rehabilitate the Rainbow Bridge in Port Arthur.  The scope included lead abatement and re-coating of over 1.5 million square feet of structural steel, bearing replacements, bolt replacements, expansion joint repairs, steel repairs, and bridge deck repairs.  Saffo utilized a SSPC Class 2A containment to encapsulate the hazardous waste that was generated by the lead abatement process from abrasive blasting.  Saffo then applied the TXDOT System III coatings of Zinc, Epoxy, Aluminum Mastic for a total of 16 Mils.