[1][2][3][4][5] The bridge, carrying a single railway track, forms part of the only rail connection between San Diego and the Greater Los Angeles area.

The bridge is part of the LOSSAN Corridor, the second busiest segment of railway in the United States.

[1][3][4][6] The bridge lies between the San Clemente Pier station to the north and the Oceanside Transit Center to the south.

[2] Salt from the beach environment had rotted the wooden support beams, they had been damaged by fires set by beachgoers, the creosote protecting the beams had been worn away, and the bridge did not meet seismic standards.

[5][10] Construction began in 2010,[3][6][11] and a new concrete replacement for this bridge segment opened in 2012 at a cost of eight million dollars,[1][4] paid by federal funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.