A World First (?) Opened Today

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A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Mar 28 19:17:48 2026 Earlier today in the Seattle area, the world’s first floating-bridge railway (or at least the first passenger light-rail system to use a floating bridge) was opened. Crossing Lake Washington, it connects the City of Seattle with the Eastside communities (especially Bellevue). The floating bridge moves with fluctuations of the water level and the wind. The rails sit on steel platforms, which themselves sit on flexible bearings, capable of moving slightly with the rotation of the bridge deck. As the deck rises and falls, so do the rails themselves, which keeps the tracks parallel and the trains moving safely even as the lake changes.
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Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by Wallyhorse* on Sat Mar 28 20:58:19 2026, in response to A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Mar 28 19:17:48 2026.* Interesting!
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Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by zac* on Sun Mar 29 10:18:54 2026, in response to A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Mar 28 19:17:48 2026.* Dang. I'd forgotten about that. I was going to go. I'll have to ride it next time I'm in Seattle.
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Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by AlM* on Sun Mar 29 17:47:00 2026, in response to A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Mar 28 19:17:48 2026.* The Wikipedia article on pontoon bridges lists only 3 currently in long term use: the Evergreen Point and Hood Canal Bridges near Seattle and one in Norway. So it sounds like this is the first floating rail bridge intended to be permanent.
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Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by zac* on Sun Mar 29 18:50:28 2026, in response to Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by AlM on Sun Mar 29 17:47:00 2026.* There are 3 in the Seattle area. This is the third but isn't new, just new for rail. I biked many times over the original I-90 bridge across the lake to Mercer Island and on to Bellevue/Redmond/Sammamish. They built a second span for it, and then when they went to reconstruct the existing bridge it sank in a storm. Because they used a lot of water during construction, and they did not want that water in Lake Washington, they stored it in the open pontoons. Well, that was an absolute genius move. During a storm, the open pontoons took on lake water, and when one sank it pulled the rest of them down with it, and the bridge too. WTF did they think would happen? They are there to hold up the bridge by keeping the water OUT of them. So the bridge with the rail is the third bridge to be built on that site. There is the 520/Evergreen Point bridge just north of it, and Hood Canal is across Puget Sound. And that is another story. In 1979 I think, there was a storm that sank that bridge too. The problem with Hood Canal is that it rises and falls with the tides. And then we have Galloping Gertie, the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. And the West Seattle Bridges, and I think one more. Seattle/Washington State don't have a great track record with bridges.
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Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by New Flyer #857* on Sun Mar 29 20:34:33 2026, in response to Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by AlM on Sun Mar 29 17:47:00 2026.* Please correct me if I'm wrong but as far as I can tell the only other time a rail service routinely crossed a floating bridge was the Pile-Pontoon Railroad Bridge between Wisconsin and Iowa. But based on the Wikipedia article for that, it seems active supervision and labor were involved with every single crossing of a train, so I guess it's a toss up whether you want to put it in the same category as what just opened yesterday on Lake Washington.
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(Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by New Flyer #857* on Mon Mar 30 07:03:59 2026, in response to A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by New Flyer #857 on Sat Mar 28 19:17:48 2026.* For those interested, this video shows what I suppose to be some of the unique apparatus for the operation at around 0:18/0:20 and also a minute or two later on the other side.
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Re: (Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by Italianstallion* on Mon Mar 30 18:23:44 2026, in response to (Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by New Flyer #857 on Mon Mar 30 07:03:59 2026.* It’s disheartening that a brand new rail line can’t keep up with the adjacent car traffic.
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Re: (Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by AlM* on Mon Mar 30 18:37:58 2026, in response to Re: (Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by Italianstallion on Mon Mar 30 18:23:44 2026.* I believe that's I-90. The cars are probably going close to 70.
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Re: (Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by Italianstallion* on Mon Mar 30 20:38:41 2026, in response to Re: (Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by AlM on Mon Mar 30 18:37:58 2026.* Why can’t a local train go 70?
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Re: (Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by zac* on Tue Mar 31 07:54:38 2026, in response to Re: (Front View Video) Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by Italianstallion on Mon Mar 30 20:38:41 2026.* Just think about how fast the trains go over the Manhattan Bridge in NYC. There is probably a speed restriction. I took the Seattle light rail out to SeaTac a few months ago and once it is away from street running it goes very fast and does pass the cars.
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Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by Mark S. Feinman* on Tue Mar 31 15:02:06 2026, in response to Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by zac on Sun Mar 29 18:50:28 2026.* Are the remains of the second bridge still at the bottom of Lake Washington? --Mark
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Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by AlM* on Tue Mar 31 15:22:21 2026, in response to Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by zac on Sun Mar 29 18:50:28 2026.* There are 3 in the Seattle area. Duh! Of course. And the one not listed by Wikipedia is the I-90 bridge shown in the video.
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Re: A World First (?) Opened Today
Posted by zac* on Tue Mar 31 21:57:22 2026, in response to Re: A World First (?) Opened Today, posted by Mark S. Feinman on Tue Mar 31 15:02:06 2026.* Some parts are still down there according to King 5 news. And it is the original bridge that sank. The second span was built as an addition and the original was closed for reconstruction. I read the wiki article on the bridge and how I described it is pretty much what happened. The water was used to remove old concrete from the walkway and was considered hazardous waste.
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