Huey P. Long Bridge Widening

The Huey P. Long Bridge project in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana included the expansion of US 90 to three lanes in each direction, while keeping the pre-existing railway that also shares the bridge. Hillsdale Fabricators supplied approximately 1,800 tons of lifting structures and falsework which were fabricated, preassembled and then shipped by barge to Louisiana from our river facility in St. Louis, Missouri.

Our temporary steel was positioned on barges below the bridge supporting the new permanent side trusses as they were hoisted, both vertically and then horizontally into place. Once the side trusses were permanently secured in place, our steel was detached, lowered and used in the same manner for the remaining trusses. Our method enhanced safety for both constructors and patrons of the HPL Bridge in lieu of the traditional “stick building” method on New Orleans’ high-traffic thoroughfare over the Mississippi River.

The structure was comprised of simple structural steel and also a complex system of welded boxes on which a precise roller system was used for the horizontal movement once at elevation. Hillsdale Fabricators is honored to have been part of this impressive feat of engineering.