IHS Asphalt prices haven't gone down in conjunction with oil prices as quickly as in the past. Related Links: Soaring Asphalt and Fuel Prices Spike Highway Paving Costs http://enr.construction.com/infrastructure/transportation/2010/0623-soaringasphalt.asp Nevada Paves Way For Life-Cycle Bids http://enr.construction.com/infrastructure/transportation/2014/0210-warm-mix-asphalt-heats-up-in-construction-market.asp Both asphalt and concrete advocates expect increases in paving activity overall, and both note that asphalt prices haven't gone down in conjunction with oil prices as quickly as in the past. While asphalt will continue its paving prevalence, proponents of concrete contend that life-cycle costs and tight budgets may contribute to an increasing competitiveness with asphalt."Oil prices have been going down, and liquid-asphalt prices
Photo by Greg Aragon / ENR Crews building a route extending the original Expo line from Culver City to Santa Monica dealt with a tight urban environment. Enlarge Click map to enlarge. Related Links: L.A. Expo Line To Open Late, Over Budget Snaking above, below and through busy streets, sound studios, artist colonies and freeways, the extension of the Exposition Line from Culver City to Santa Monica is nearing completion thanks in part to the flexibility imparted by design-build, project officials say.The 6.7-mile, $1.5-billion project includes seven bridges and seven stations squeezed into a busy urban setting. The light-rail system
Photo Courtesy of Metropolitan Transit Authority While projects face the perils of optimistic initial cost estimates, they can be "sold" to the public with honesty and outreach, says MTACC chief. Photo Courtesy of Metropolitan Transit Authority Related Links: Infrastructure Megaprojects: Looking For Legacies Investigators Eye Drill Holes, Decking After Dangerous Blast Meet the $17-Billion Man of the New York City-area MTA Megaprojects blow through initial budget estimates on a regular basis, contends Michael Horodniceanu, president of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority Capital Construction Co., . That certainly has been the case with MTACC's East Side Access (ESA) rail project:
Related Links: Project Members Ponder Untold Stories of the Bay Bridge Boston Begins Reaping Benefits Of Big Dig In NYC, An Ambassador Gains Public Acceptance Of Megaprojects California High-Speed Rail Proponents Plow Forward Transportation's Next Chapter: Maintenance, Mobility, Money "If God went to a local community board meeting and presented a plan to build the Garden of Eden," says a wry Sam Schwartz, New York City Dept. of Transportation's former first deputy commissioner, "people would protest the location, the design and how they're going to treat the serpent."Is public suspicion justified? In his book "Megaprojects and Risk," Oxford professor Bent
Photo Courtesy of Caltrans Making the media wait for briefings did not ease tough scrutiny of the new bridge. Photo Courtesy of Caltrans Related Links: Infrastructure Megaprojects: Looking For Legacies Temporary Fix Will Allow San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge to Open on Time Bay Bridge Errors Put Caltrans Under Fire A lengthy delay mandated by the governor, a rebid and a fierce debate over the design of the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge were just the beginning. Over the course of the 11-year construction period came allegations, faulty rods, foundation questions and even an FBI investigation on the $6.4-billion crossing, which
Photo by AP Wide World A tragic death due to faulty tunnel panels in the I-90 tunnel is the fatal flaw in the Big Dig, which many say was ultimately worth it. Photo by AP Wide World Related Links: Infrastructure Megaprojects: Looking For Legacies Massachusetts DOT Agrees to Pay Contractor's Big Dig Claim After 15-Year Battle MassDOT Chief Jeffrey Mullan Leaving in Wake of Big Dig Safety Problems The Boston Central Artery/Tunnel project would seem to be a textbook case of a megaproject gone off the rails: Projected to cost $8 billion, the "Big Dig" ended up at $14.6 billion.
Image Courtesy of California High-Speed Rail Authority Although voters approved billions of dollars in bonds for high-speed rail, fierce foes still fight. Related Links: Infrastructure Megaprojects: Looking For Legacies Officials Cite Big Steps Forward In California High-Speed Program California Clears Path for Funding To Get High-Speed Rail Back on Track Jeff Morales, chief executive officer of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, often speaks of how the plan to build the Golden Gate Bridge produced 2,000 lawsuits and descriptions of "an upside-down rat trap."Recalling these facts "helps us to get through each day as people throw rocks at us," Morales told
Photo by AP Wideworld OSHA and the contractor are looking into why an overpass collapsed during demolition, but some say due engineering diligence could have prevented the decision to begin removing a side span before the middle span. Related Links: Construction Worker Killed In Ohio Overpass Collapse Separate investigations by the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration and the contractor Kokosing into the cause of the Jan. 19 Interstate 75 overpass collapse near Cincinnati will likely take months. But an industry expert suggests that adequate engineering documentation before the demolition of the overpass might have prevented the accident, in which
