The future is now: these snapshots of successful projects from around the country show that the stage is set for a new approach to highway design, construction, and maintenance

Public Roads, May-June, 2004 by Kathleen A. Bergeron

In this issue, several articles pose a "what if" question about a new vision for highway development. The approach envisions the construction of long-lasting roads using innovative technologies and practices to accomplish fast delivery of efficient and safe pavements and bridges. But is this approach easier said than done? Are there examples out there now, demonstrating what is possible?

State departments of transportation (DOTs) and their partners already are implementing many projects employing one or more innovative approaches or technologies. And these examples are not all mega-budget projects; several cost only a few hundred thousand dollars to complete. Nor are they all emergency projects executed in response to crisis situations. Clearly, emergencies represent unique situations where highway officials set aside the need to hold lengthy public hearings and develop numerous design options because of the necessity of getting a facility back into service quickly.

The following examples demonstrate the diversity of ongoing projects. And they are not limited to one or two States but are scattered throughout the country.

Alabama Employs Incentives to Replace Bridge

On January 5, 2002, a loaded gasoline tanker traveling north on Interstate 65 (I-65) within the I-20/I-59/I-65 interchange in Birmingham, AL, crashed and burned under the I-65 southbound bridge. The fire caused the steel girders of the main span over southbound I-65 to sag about 3 meters (10 feet), which required closing both northbound and southbound I-65. Removal of the damaged bridge began as soon as the wreck was cleared, and northbound traffic was restored on January 6. The road user cost resulting from closure of the southbound bridge was estimated at $90,000 per day.

The department designed a new concrete girder bridge and awarded the contract on January 16; construction started on January 21. The contract allowed 90 days for completion of the new bridge with an incentive/disincentive provision of $25,000 per day. The successful bidder completed the new bridge in 37 days, earning a $1,225,000 incentive. The contract cost, including the incentive payment, was still less than the cost proposed by the second bidder.

"Within 53 days, the damaged bridge was removed, the design completed, and a new bridge built, demonstrating intense commitment and cooperation among all parties involved--especially State engineers, the concrete fabricator, and the contractor that built the new bridge," says Division Administrator Joe D. Wilkerson with the FHWA Alabama Division.

For more information, contact Division Administrator Joe D. Wilkerson, Alabama FHWA at 334-223-7370 or joe.wilkerson@fhwa.dot.gov.

Alaska Upgrades 18 Bridges With Precast Concrete

Deadhorse, AK, is located on Prudhoe Bay, where the Alaska oil pipeline originates in the North Slope oil fields. Although the 668-kilometer (415-mile) Dalton Highway has an average daily traffic count of only 250 vehicles, the highway is critical to Deadhorse because it is the only road connecting the community to the outside world and carries all supplies for the oil field. In 1992, the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities began replacing the timber decks with precast concrete slabs on 18 bridges on the Dalton Highway between Fairbanks and Deadhorse. Instead of continually replacing the timber decks every 8 years, the agency decided to use precast concrete panels that would last for approximately 50 years, resulting in savings in the cost of replacing the timber decks and in recurring impacts on the traveling public.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

During reconstruction, the timber decks were replaced with full-width precast concrete slab units. Through negotiations with the trucking and tour bus companies, the department agreed that the road could be closed completely to traffic for 12 hours each day. During this period, the contractor removed sections of the old timber deck, welded new shear studs to the top flange of the steel girders, placed the precast slab units (which had block-outs to accommodate the new shear studs), placed quick-setting mortar in the block-outs, and then reopened the road to traffic. This process continued until each bridge was completed. The construction technique enabled the department to redeck the bridges in approximately 7 months, with minimal impact on truck traffic.

For more information, contact Bridge Engineer Stephen Boch with the FHWA Alaska Division at 907-586-7427, or steve.hoch@fhwa.dot.gov.

Arizona Uses Innovative Bidding for HOV Project

The Arizona DOT is widening SR-51 (Piestewa Freeway) between I-10 and Shea Boulevard in Phoenix, AZ. Adding high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes in each direction will make a direct connection to the existing HOV lanes on I-10 at the south end of the project, representing a substantial extension of the HOV concept in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The connection to I-10 provides a smooth and efficient link between HOV lanes on the intersecting freeways.