ENR Mountain States 2023 Best Projects
Safety Award of Merit: 64th Avenue South Overpass
Photo by Doug Busch
64th Avenue South Overpass
Fargo, N.D.
Award of Merit
Submitted by: Ames Construction
Owner: City of Fargo; North Dakota Dept. of Transportation
Lead Design Firm/Structural Engineer: KLJ Engineering
General Contractor: Ames Construction
Civil Engineer: Houston Engineering Inc.
Subcontractor: Northern Improvement Concrete
A $14.8-million, 400-ft two-span steel girder bridge over I-29 now connects the existing 64th Avenue South east of the interstate with new construction to the west, improving system linkage, safety and efficiency in the rapidly growing southern neighborhoods of Fargo. Open to traffic in October 2022, the overpass provides a new route to a high school and gives a boost to housing developments on the west side of the interstate.
Scope of work included bridge construction, earthwork to create the new freeway overpass, lightweight fill installation with geofoam blocks and underground utilities.
31,150 work hours, crews recorded no lost-time accidents or OSHA recordable incidents. A commitment to safety ran from top management all the way through craft personnel, with all project team members participating in weekly progress meetings, monthly supervisor meetings, daily observation reporting and quarterly safety celebrations.
Project-specific safety plans took into consideration cutting geofoam blocks with a hot wire knife, working in proximity to traffic, working at night and fall protection when working over live traffic.
