Re: No consideration of the piers, abutments and foundations! Re: Lobato Trestle Report

As a civil engineering student, my guess is that the bridge is only long enough for an engine and 8 cars, so considering Helper engines, photo freights, etc would be irrelevant because only 8 cars would be on the trestle at any given point in time. Civil Engineers and Structural engineers are likely to say that 100 year old structures will wear out faster due to more modern usage and heavier equipment using it on a regular basis. The best thing would be to repair the parts that got damaged and possibly add some strengthening to the superstructure to make sure if something DID break on the trestle, that there was a backup in place to ensure the safety of both people and equipment.
Just my 2 cents...