Tower: (Satellite, not only is the tower gone, but so is the track on the eastern connection.)
Bridge: (Bridge Hunter; no Historic Bridges; pghbridges; B&T; 3D Satellite) |
| 3D Satellite |
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| Postcard via BridgeHunter, Public Domain |
The Water & Sewer Authority land used to have an elegant power plant. A different power plant was standing there in this Flickr Photo.
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| Image via BridgeHunter via eBook, p259 Fig. 115b. -- Through Pin-connected Parker Truss Bridge over Allegheny River at Aspinwall, Pa., Brilliant Cut-off, Pennsylvania R. R. |
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| 1 of 3 posted by Bridges & Tunnels The Brilliant Branch Railroad Bridge was constructed for the Brilliant Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) and featured a 1,200-foot-long Warren truss bridge across the Allegheny River between Pittsburgh and Aspinwall, Pennsylvania. The Brilliant Branch, also referred to as the Brilliant Cut-Off, was constructed by the PRR as a cut-off to avoid the busy Union Station and its yards downtown and as the final component of a railroad beltway around Pittsburgh. The bridge opened to traffic in 1904. In the wake of the collapse of Penn Central (PRR’s successor) and in the midst of the U.S. Railway Association’s controversial $7.3 billion railroad revitalization plan, it was proposed to reroute 25 to 35 through freight trains from the Fort Wayne Bridge in downtown to the Brilliant Branch river crossing. But it was feared that it would cause congestion because of the steeper grades and sharper curves at the wye in Aspinwall. Instead, the Brilliant Branch was abandoned, only to be revived in 1995 for the Allegheny Valley Railroad (AVRR). The line has only been minimally used since 2019 after the loss of AVRR's only customer north of the Allegheny River crossing. ▶︎ Check out more photos and a history of this unique crossing at |
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| Mainline Photography, Sep 2022 |
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| CarloadExpress |
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| Ivan Safyan Abrams Flickr There were 10-15 locomotives in this "light engine" move across PC's ex-PRR Brilliant Bridge, probably bound for Conway Yard some 30 miles west. That's UY tower just visible at the end of the bridge. 1975. |
Ivan's photo not only clearly shows the cut-stone construction of the piers, he documents that there was a junction tower in the wye on the west side. So once again, I fire up the wayback machine to find the location of the tower.
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| EarthExplorer: Apr 9, 1952 @ 23,600, AR1NZ0000020063 |
It is off the eastern connection soon after it forks off the bridge.
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| Digitally Zoomed |
Dave Kuntz posted four photos with the comment: "The Brilliant Branch Railroad Bridge in Aspinwall PA. One leg of the wye has the rails completely removed while the bridge itself rarely sees trains anymore. A "brilliant" park has been built in the center of the wye. Plans are underway to turn the entire bridge into a bike trail."
Jay Anthony: Was it ever double track or was the extra space “just in case”?
Ron Mele: Jay Anthony Both legs were built with double track. The west leg had double track well into the Conrail era. The east leg had a single track for as long as I can remember (early 60s). The second track must have been removed a long time ago. The remaining east leg track probably came out some time in the Penn-Central era or very Conrail.
James Ralston: Carload Express (specifically, Allegheny Valley Railroad) owns the Brilliant Bridge, and as of late 2023, still uses the spur tracks on the west split of the wye for car storage. (You can see the cars if you take the Highland Park Bridge northbound and take the Aspinwall exit; you can also see them on Google Maps satellite view.)
Given the upcoming redevelopment of the Sharpsburg waterfront from a former brownfield to commercial/housing/retail (1), I could very well see AVR abandoning the bridge. But if the city wants to rail-to-trail it, I'm not sure what they think they're going to do with the trail on the south end of the bridge, as the AVR line it connects to (the strip district / Oakmont / New Kensington line) is very much active…
Dan McNally: This bridge and the Brilliant line to Homewood are in the process of being purchased by Allegheny River Trails Park. It includes spurs going to 13th street in Sharpsburg, the water treatment plant and half way to Nadine road.
Tim Shanahan shared
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