Better Roads, 25 September 2015 Chris Hill The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) is painting a grim picture of the economic impact on the state with current bridge funding and maintenance programs, estimating $94 billion in lost production value and a loss of 100,000 jobs over a 20-year period. The department’s 2015 Bridge Condition Report provides an overview of…
Better Roads, 25 September 2015 Tom Kuennen The need for speed in construction is driving much of the bridge design in this country. The burden to accomplish faster bridge construction, however, falls on heavy contractors, who must work tougher schedules and longer workdays while they solve site organization, demolition, and foundation and superstructure erection puzzles not taught in college….
The Institute for Transportation at Iowa State University has released a report that considers the effect of bridge width on deck cracking and other parameters including bridge skew, girder spacing, and abutment type. Read the Report
The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development has released a report that explains a flexural resistance designing process using post-tensioning prestressed carbon reinforced polymers laminates adhering to bridge girders. Read the Report
The Institute for Transportation at Iowa State University has released a report that evaluates the grouted coupler connection details utilized on precast concrete elements on one of Iowa’s bridges. Read the Report
The Mountain-Plains Consortium has released a report that attempts to quantify the parameters for common bridge nondestructive evaluation (NDE) methods as a means of implementing risk-based planning. Read the Report
The California Department of Transportation has released a report that compares seismic modeling results of two different software programs conducted on a sample of bridges classified as ordinary standards bridges, which are bridges that have characteristics including being less than 300 feet long and having soil not susceptible to liquefaction or scour. Read the Report
AASHTO Journal, 18 September 2015 Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Transportation Secretary Aubrey Layne, along with U.S. Deputy Transportation Secretary Victor Mendez, opened a new roadway bridge near Arlington National Cemetery that incorporates alternative travel modes with improved roadway use and features that highlight the local community’s heritage. The $59.5 million project replaced a structurally deficient, weight-limited structure built…
TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) has issued a request for proposals to provide guidance to help bridge owners and designers define enhanced seismic performance objectives and design bridges to meet those objectives. Proposals are due by November 3, 2015. Project: Project Information Project Number: 12-106 Read the RFP
AASHTO Journal, 11 September 2015 The Minnesota and Wisconsin Departments of Transportation said Sept. 4 that the completion date for the bridge portion of the St. Croix Crossing project near Stillwater, Minn., will be delayed past the autumn of 2016 and into 2017. “This is a very complex engineering project,” said MnDOT Commissioner Charles Zelle. “This is only the…
AASHTO Journal, 11 September 2015 A heavily traveled bridge on northbound Interstate 65 near Lafayette, Ind., which was closed after sinking several inches during some construction work over Wildcat Creek, was reopened to traffic the night of Sept. 6 after being closed since Aug. 7. That was a week or more ahead of the mid-September reopening schedule the Indiana…
The Mountain-Plains Consortium at North Dakota State University has released a report that examines changes in bridges’ mechanical properties for concrete and under fatigue loading and freeze-thaw cycles. Read the Report
The Florida Department of Transportation has released a report that assesses the feasibility of carbon fiber reinforced polymer tendons and to develop guidelines for post-tensioned bridge applications, including segmental bridges and pier caps. Read the Report
AASHTO Journal, 4 September 2015 The Wyoming Department of Transportation faces more than $1 million in damage to an Interstate 90 bridge in Gillette, along with traffic curbs on two routes and lengthy repairs, after a truck hauling an oversized load on a state highway struck it from beneath on Sept. 2. The I-90 bridge over state route 59…
AASHTO Journal, 4 September 2015 Some drivers heading north on Interstate 65 out of Lafayette, Ind., have been dealing with a long detour throughout August that might cost them as much as an extra hour, news reports say. But the Indiana Department of Transportation said its contractor projects that a damaged I-65 bridge should reopen to traffic by mid-September….
AASHTO Journal, 4 September 2015 The Missouri Department of Transportation said the number of bridges on state roads that it lists as “in critical need of attention has risen to 641 this summer from 591 a year ago. While those are still safe to drive over, MoDOT said such “critical condition bridges are the state’s worst, and with continued…
AASHTO Journal, 4 September 2015 The Rhode Island Department of Transportation said an accelerated inspection it conducted in recent months of 230 structurally deficient bridges led to emergency closures in a few areas and immediate repairs at 28 structures. RIDOT launched the special inspections program in May and finished on schedule by mid-August. It resulted in an emergency closure…
The Kentucky Transportation Center at the University of Kentucky has released a report that considers the tools, training, and plans that will be needed for carrying out preventative maintenance work on bridges. Read the Report
AASHTO Journal, 28 August 2015 At the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the Mississippi Department of Transportation is recalling how the storm left more than $1 billion in damages to the state’s transportation infrastructure, including destruction of two major bridges crossing bays along the Gulf Coast. The agency has also highlighted the rebuilding efforts it launched to bring the…
KTA-Tator, Inc. has made the subject 48-minute training Webinar available. Topics Covered: • Overview & purpose – SSPC Guide 15 • Listing of ISO Standards for soluble salt detection • Methods of surface extraction • Methods of analysis in the shop or field • Conversions based on assumption of sodium chloride Access the Subject Webinar
KTA-Tator, Inc. has made the subject 26-minute training Webinar available. Topics Covered: • Review of Industry Standards • Review of instrumentation and measurement acquisition procedures • Content of SSPC-PA 17 Standard Access the Subject Webinar
KTA-Tator, Inc. has made the subject 50-minute training Webinar available. Topics Covered: • Why measure adhesion properties? • What is being measured? • Selecting an adhesion testing method • Measuring adhesion by the tape test • Measuring adhesion by the knife test • Measuring pull-off adhesion • Special requirements for testing concrete coating adhesion • Common pitfalls when testing…
KTA-Tator, Inc. has made the subject 44-minute training Webinar available. Topics Covered: Background of SSPC- PA 2 Overview and purpose of SSPC-PA 2 Purpose of ASTM D 7091 Definitions Gage Descriptions Calibration, Verification of Accuracy, and Adjustment Measurement Procedures Frequency and number of measurements Conformance to specified thickness Content of nine appendices Access the Subject Webinar
The Maryland State Highway Administration has released a report that discusses corrosion decay on structures as it relates to the deployment of materials that can be used to provide durable corrosion protection and prevention of premature spalling or corrosion-induced cracking. Read the Report
The Florida Department of Transportation has released a report that evaluates the performance and usability of internally-cured concrete by using lightweight aggregates for bridge decks and concrete pavement slabs in Florida. Read the Report
The Oregon Department of Transportation has released a report that investigates methods for strengthening deficient flexural steel anchorages on bridges by using supplemental surface bonded metallic reinforcing bars. Read the Report
AASHTO Journal, 21 August 2015 North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory announced Aug. 18 that final roadblocks have been cleared away for the state Department of Transportation to proceed with building a new Herbert C. Bonner Bridge on NC 12 over the Oregon Inlet along the Outer Banks. Bonner Bridge “Completing the terms of a settlement agreement reached in June,…
Austroads has released a report that provides information about the design, construction, and maintenance of 122 road tunnels in Europe, Asia, North and Central America, Australia, and New Zealand. This report is available for no fee after logging onto the site. Read the Report
The Maryland State Highway Administration has released a report that addresses possible barriers and concerns related to the implementation of prefabricated bridges and accelerated bridge construction, including an assessment of quality and durability. Read the Report
The Maryland State Highway Administration has released a report that investigates the design criteria and practices used for improving the quality of bridge designs, including for live load deflection on steel bridges. Read the Report
Contact us for more information.
