Construction is under way on the largest and most expensive highway project in the state of Utah, the $1.725-billion Interstate 15 CORE project. This week, crews from a consortium called Provo River Constructors began prep work along a 24-mile stretch, which included grading shoulders to add two lanes in both directions, the extension of a drainage pipe and the demolition of three bridges. Later stages of the project will rebuild and reconfigure 10 freeway interchanges and replace 55 aging bridges. Provo River Constructors includes Wadsworth Bros. Construction, Draper, Utah; Fluor Corp., Aliso Viejo, Calif.; and Ames Construction, Salt Lake City.
Ten years ago, after a lengthy period of being tested on bridges throughout the country, fiber-reinforced polymer composites—touted for their lightness, longevity and resistance to corrosion compared with traditional materials—seemed poised to enter the U.S. mainstream bridge-building market.
In Maine, contractors are “blowing up” bridges: They are inflating hollow carbon-fiber tubes on-site, bending them into arches and infusing them with resin. Filled with concrete, the bridges are ready to be decked, backfilled and paved. Acting as bridge arches for short spans, carbon tubes are inflated and filled with concrete by workers in Maine. Related Links: Dozens of Test Projects Later, Advocates Still Have Durable Dreams Material for Milk Containers Now Supports Railroad Traffic Brit E. Svoboda, chief executive of Advanced Infrastructure Technologies Inc., which owns the rights to the system, is hiking around the U.S. to promote its
Like any railroad crossing, the two short bridges completed this month at Fort Eustis, Va. will be expected to support 130 tons. Unlike typical crossings, however, they are made almost entirely of materials that once were used to contain milk and detergent. Contractors say plastic materials allowed for lighter equipment. Related Links: Dozens of Test Projects Later, Advocates Still Have Durable Dreams Bridge-in-a-Backpack Tech ‘Blows Up’ Next-Gen Bridges Working with Rutgers University, Axion International Holdings Inc., New Providence, N.J., developed proprietary polymer formulas that combine plastics to make an end product tougher than its ingredients. Sales partner Innovative Green Solutions
A contractor’s value-engineering suggestion shaved $2 million off Idaho’s first single-point urban interchange (SPUI), now nearing completion over Interstate 84 near the Boise airport. Photo: Idaho DOT Single-point urban design and value engineering saved money Designer Stanley Consultants, Meridian, Idaho, recommended a SPUI instead of a diamond interchange because it requires less land, moves traffic more quickly and permits wider sidewalks and new bike lanes, says Bob Jacobs, Stanley’s chief transportation engineer. The smaller footprint saved $600,000 by eliminating the need to acquire two buildings. The $17.8-million cost is funded by the federal stimulus bill. Stanley faced a tight timetable
Morocco’s state railroad company, ONCF, has awarded a design management and supervision contract for 49 months of civil construction of the estimated $2.3-billion, 200-kilometers Tangiers-Kentira high-speed line to Paris-based Systra S.A., with local partners. The project, backed by the French government and companies, is part of the plan for 1,500 km of fast track by 2030.
As the California High Speed Rail Authority gains a new chief operating officer, a May report released by the state auditor warns of potential delays in the authority’s planned $45-billion project due to inadequate planning, oversight and contract management. The report warns that the authority hasn’t identified enough non-state matching funds, which are required to access the $9.9 billion OK’d in the voter-approved 2008 California bond that launched the project. The project has received $2.25 billion from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Construction plans call for 2.5 times more state and federal funding to be spent by 2013 than
Unveiled on April 22, the final design for the $1.5-billion Transbay Transit Center in San Francisco will feature high-level seismic and environmental elements. The five-story glass-and-steel station, billed as the Grand Central Station of the West, will consolidate 12 transit operations, including anticipated high-speed rail. Photo: Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects The proposed transit hub would be a 1,400-ft-long structural tube with moment frames. The Transbay Joint Powers Authority hub, designed by New Haven, Conn.-based Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, includes a place-marker for an iconic 1,200-ft-tall tower. Part of a $4-billion mixed-used project, the tower is still the subject of financial
Florida lawmakers passed a $70-billion 2010 budget on the final day of the legislative session on April 30, but raided the state Transportation Trust Fund of $160 million to help fill a revenue gap. “It’s going to defer some more projects, no question about it,” says Bob Burleson, president of the Florida Transportation Builders’ Association in Tallahassee. Kevin Thibault, Florida Dept. of Transportation, says “it’s too early to tell” how the lost revenue will affect planned projects, but it will likely push out start dates. Burleson says the delays could add up to as much as $400 million in deferred
New designs, unveiled April on 27 for three bridges, shaves $45 million off Fort Worth’s Trinity River Vision project costs. The $909-million urban waterfront plan aims to connect 88 miles of the river and its surrounding communities. The original total cost for the three bridges was about $155 million. Projected cost using the original design, by Bing Thom, Vancouver, was $114 million, not including another $41 million for costs including land acquisitions. The city of Fort Worth worked with a new design team to present a citizen advisory group with cheaper options. Lead designer Miguel Rosales, president of Rosales +
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