Bad drivers can put their employers at risk. Whether an employee is driving a company car or being reimbursed for driving their own vehicle on company business, the employer can be accused of negligent entrustment following a collision. In simple terms, negligent entrustment means an employee or contractor was dispatched to drive without proper regard for his or her qualifications and/or ability to safely operate a vehicle.  Because settlements can be large and judgments can include punitive damages for egregious behavior, employers need to take note. Although the driver’s own negligence in causing a collision may be the primary issue,

In an industry already in crisis—with rising jobsite deaths and injuries and now in a rush to start and complete economic stimulus projects worth many billions of dollars—where, ultimately, does responsibility for worker safety lie? Does it, as some argue, rest partly with individual workers, or should employers, project owners or even the government be held fully accountable when there is an accident on a construction site? READ AND COMMENT ONTHE DUELING VIEWPOINTS: Proposal: Accident Prevention Is Everyone's Responsibility Reply: Unrealistic Plan Poses Many Problems And Won't Do the Job Earlier this year, ENR published a Viewpoint titled, “We Need

Many ENR readers have watched with interest the recent debate over the proposed Las Vegas-to-Los Angeles high-speed rail corridor running along Interstate 15. Long viewed as a potential maglev project, things got a little murky last month when U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) switched his support from maglev to conventional high-speed steel wheel technology. But what happened in Vegas is not staying there. With the advent of the Obama presidency, rail suddenly is a hot and potentially lucrative topic everywhere.

A small precast-concrete bridge in New Jersey is being replaced with a hybrid-composite beam structure that could have a service life of 100 years. This is the third project using the technology, which combines a glass-fiber reinforced shell, self-consolidating concrete for compression reinforcement and high-strength continuous steel fibers for tension reinforcement. Photo: HC Bridge Co., LLC Hybrid-composite beam in New Jersey was installed with an excavator. HC Bridge Co. LLC, Chicago, is supplying beams for the $1.34-million state Rte. 23 Peckman’s Brook Bridge in Cedar Grove, N.J. The 50-year-old four- lane, 66-ft-wide, 30-ft-long bridge is considered structurally deficient and is

The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority on June 25 awarded a $4.9-million contract to the Boston office of Stantec for engineering services on the 45-year old, 60-mgd West Roxbury Wastewater Tunnel. The 12-in thick cast-in-place concrete lining in the 12,500-ft long, 84-in dia. rock tunnel, which serves about 125,000 homes and businesses, is eroded due to hydrogen sulfide corrosion. J.F. White, Framingham, Mass., will inspect the tunnel, which has two portals and a 220-ft deep shaft, this fall to help determine the extent of the problem and the relining solution. "The 12-in liner is structural and as of a decade ago

Foundation work for a signature bridge is under way as part of a $2.2-billion Interstate corridor project in Connecticut. Critical elements include constructing the nation’s first extradosed bridge and beefing up commuter rail service in what Connecticut Dept. of Transportation officials say is the largest single construction effort ever undertaken by the agency. Photo: URS New Q-bridge (above) section foundation is located between existing I-95 and vertical-lift Tomlinson Bridge. Photo: Aeropix Photo: Raito Inc. Supertop rig drills 200-ft-long steel casings into rock. The 7.5-mile-long I-95 New Haven Harbor Crossing Corridor Improvement Program, extending from the Long Wharf area in New

Amid a growing chorus of complaints, two U.S. Senators have introduced legislation to recall Chinese-made drywall and to ban further imports until federal safety standards are developed. Meanwhile, Florida’s governor has asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to help the state develop and implement chemical-testing strategies. Slide Show Photo: Florida Dept. of Health Chinese-made drywall could be the cause of household corrosion and sulfur smells. Senators Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and Mary L. Landrieu (D-La.) introduced legislation on Mar 30 pressing the Consumer Product Safety Commission to recall Chinese-made drywall and work with federal testing labs to determine the exact level

With about $131 billion in the federal economic-stimulus package targeted for public construction, a massive amount of money now is flowing to federal and state agencies. Lessons learned from past experiences with big-ticket construction efforts for rebuilding Iraq, responding to Hurricane Katrina and delivering Boston’s Central Artery/Tunnel project could keep some of that money from going to waste. Slide Show Photo: SIGIR Iraqi prison job (above) was halted, but Ministry of Defense building was completed. BOWEN The $787.2-billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), signed into law on Feb. 17, is an economic-stimulus package of unprecedented size and

As workers at Cianbro Cos.’s Eastern Manufacturing Facility in Brewer, Maine, load four massive petroleum refinery modules for barge shipment to Port Arthur, Texas, the firm’s chairman is touting a plan that could reap millions of dollars to spur construction of a new statewide green infrastructure. Peter G. Vigue, who also is Pittsfield, Maine-based Cianbro’s CEO, calls for establishing an energy trust authority to lease state-owned land and rights-of-way, particularly along Interstate 95, and more. The plan is backed by state legislative leaders, who are planning public hearings. Photo: Cianbro Maine fabrication yard produces refi nery modules for a record-breaking

As President Obama’s multibillion-dollar stimulus package becomes law, one thing is clear: thousands of construction workers will be helping to transform the American economy and landscape. Still, employment worries continue to be a source of concern. + Image Graphic: Rommel Alama / ENR Source: PAS inc. *2003 – 2008 actual annual increases, 2009 forcasted increases (excluding 0% increases) Photo: Ne Liuna Media/PR Stimulus helps but could still leave many workers jobless. "The nearly one million construction workers who have lost their jobs across the country have a renewed chance of success with passage of the stimulus legislation," says Stephen E.