A Decade Later, Inspection Shows Eight Mile Road’s FRP Bridge Deck and Beam System In “Like New” Condition
DAYTON, Ohio - Composite Advantage engineers recently inspected Hamilton County, Ohio’s Eight Mile Road Bridge to see how its fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) deck was holding up after more than a decade of vehicle traffic. The span was the first bridge in the U.S. to receive Composite Advantage’s FiberSPAN prefabricated, drop-in-place system with FRP tee-stiffened panels. Installation for the 22 ft.-long, 62 ft.-wide two-lane crossing took one day. Eight Mile’s specifications called for L/800...
Proposed Modifications to AASHTO Culvert Load Rating Specifications
Over the past decade, significant state and federal resources have been expended to develop a state‐of-the-art set of reliability‐based bridge design and load rating specifications, including Load and Resistance Factor Design (LRFD) and Load and Resistance Factor Rating (LRFR). However, these design and rating methods were developed for larger bridge structures, and may result in overly conservative ratings when applied to buried culverts. Of the more than 600,000 records in the National Bridge...
Washington State, Oregon Join Forces to Replace I-5 Highway Bridge
Washington State Governor Jay Inslee (D) and Oregon Governor Kate Brown (D) launched a bi-state effort on November 18 to replace the Interstate 5 bridge that spans the Columbia River and connects the two states. [Above photo via the Washington State Governor’s Office.] “This is a new day,” Gov. Inslee said in a Medium blog post. “We need to replace the I-5 bridge over the Columbia River to benefit both Washingtonians and Oregonians.” Gov. Brown (left) and Gov. Inslee Gov. Brown noted in...
Michigan DOT Deploys ‘Robot Boats’ for Bridge Inspections
To improve the detection of streambed erosion and degradation around a bridge’s substructure, the Michigan Department of Transportation is deploying four unmanned surface vessels or USVs equipped with sonar and a topside camera; a vessel allows inspectors to take measurements and capture images while positioned safely on the shoreline. [Above photo by the Michigan DOT.] Such remote-piloted drone boats are specifically being used in situations where “scour” may occur, the agency said; when...
Video: Midway Point Reached On Nevada’s Second-Longest Bridge
The Nevada Department of Transportation reported on November 7 that construction is now halfway done on the state’s second longest bridge: a 2,635-foot-long highway “flyover” structure that will connect northbound U.S. Highway 95 to the westbound 215 Beltway in northwest Las Vegas. [Above photo by Nevada DOT]
WYDOT, WGFD Commit Combined $2.5 Million Toward Wildlife Underpasses
Two state agencies have committed a combined $2.5 million toward installing wildlife underpasses along US 189 in southwest Wyoming to help reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and improve safety. The Wyoming Transportation Commission recently approved a $1.25 million match of the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission’s $1.25 million contribution, which will be used toward the Dry Piney wildlife crossing project north of La Barge. “We are committed to ensuring the state’s roads are as s...
ADOT Uses New Technique to ‘Slide’ New I-40 Bellemont Bridges into Place
PHOENIX – A new technique that basically slides precast bridges into place has greatly reduced delays for the Bellemont community with an Arizona Department of Transportation project replacing spans over Interstate 40 at Transwestern Road west of Flagstaff. Using this technique, which the contractor proposed, allowed crews to replace the bridges during a nine-day closure of Transwestern Road over I-40 rather than having the six to eight months of restrictions required for a traditional bridge...
AASHTO Releases a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the Enhancement and Support of AASHTOWare Bridge Design & Rating
A Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit competitive proposals for professional services to complete the development and delivery of the first release of the planned modernized AASHTOWare Bridge Design-Rating system (BrDR 7.0) and to provide ongoing maintenance, support, and enhancements to the AASHTOWare Bridge Design-Rating products. A project to deliver a modernized version of the AASHTOWare Bridge Design-Rating software was initiated in July 2016. The goals of the original BrDR modernizat...
Load, Capacity Calculation Errors, Inadequate Peer Review Led to Pedestrian Bridge Collapse
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board determined, during a public board meeting held Tuesday, that load and capacity calculation errors made by FIGG Bridge Engineers, Inc., are the probable cause of the fatal, March 15, 2018, Florida International University pedestrian bridge collapse in Miami. Contributing to the collapse was Louis Berger’s inadequate peer review, which failed to detect FIGG’s calculation errors in its design of the main span truss member 11/12 nodal region a...
LMN Architects Designs New Bridge in Everett Washington
Seattle - LMN Architects is pleased to celebrate the design and construction of the new Everett Grand Avenue Pedestrian Bridge in Everett, Washington. The bridge is a unique piece of public infrastructure that will provide a vital new link between the city of Everett to its growing waterfront district. The project is emblematic of LMN Architects approach to crafting contemporary, pragmatic and transformative infrastructure within the public realm. The bridge will establish a new connection be...