Reducing Massachusetts Deficient Bridges

The great work of the people at MassDOT's Accelerated Bridge program and consultants (like me) have been able to start reducing the number of structurally deficient bridges.

I think the state did a great job with this graphic, showing that the number of bridges has dropped from 543 to 475 which is a big step in improving our states infrastructure and creating jobs for a lot of Mass residents.

Arch Bridge Design in Southern Mass

So last Thursday (St. Patrick's Day) after completing a bridge inspection (see previous post), we headed over to take photos of drainage pipe, trench and salt water march replication area.

When we arrived we thought it would be a good idea to double check with the office before simply taking the photos and leaving the site which is located a good hour or so from the office. Good thing we double checked because there ended up being a few extra things to check.

First we had to take photos of where the existing bridge use to be.

Next we had to locate a stone walk way. After that we located a few signs.

Then opened some catch basins and checked inverts and pipe diameters. 

By the time we were finished the water had already risen a few feet.  

Here's a picture from last winter when they were constructing the temporary bridge.    

Providence Concrete T Beam Ramp

Last Thursday (St. Patrick's Day) I inspected a concrete three span concrete T-beam bridge in Providence RI. For a Spring day in New England we could not have asked for a better day, I believe that the air temp was around 65 or so but the water was somewhere around 35ish.

The bridge carries I-95 spans 1319 feet over the Moshassuck River (57.1 feet Max span).  With a 42 degree skew the width of 28.5 feet seemed more like one hundred with such a large skew. 

The inspection started off a little slow, squeezing into waders and carrying a 20 foot ladder down to the river. Once that was complete we were able to make our way around the dry spans quickly and noticed vertical cracking on the beams which the previous report missed. 

We saved the tough part for last tho. The river was moving moderately and the pockets of scour left awkward drops off up to 38" high and add to that carrying an extension ladder. The good part about the severe skew was that it helped to hold the ladder in place for a secure feeling and helped us finish the inspection safely.

While inspecting one of the dry spans, we had another surprise QC check by RIDOT. So far it seems to be a waste of our time and RIDOT's but I'm sure its well worth it for RIDOT to know which consultants are operating safely and correctly.

Cumberland Pony Truss Bridge Inspection

So last week I ran out of time catching up on past inspections, so here are a few I missed. Last Monday I was out in Cumberland to complete two inspections which were post posted due to high water.

This first bridge is a small simply supported rolled beam bridge which 20 feet over Abbott Run Canal. During the inspection RIDOT stopped by to do a quality control check and one of them informed us that the nice house spanning over the canal has a glass floor to see down to the canal below.

The bridge was rebuilt in 2006 and replaced the previously posted bridge which was built in 1886. The rebuilt bridge incorporated the original exterior girders and rail for aesthetics and only support their own self weight. 

We inspected the bridge in waders and used a 16 ft ladder. We joked before the inspection after reading the previous inspection which stated "Exercise caution when wading in channel upstream and downstream of the bridge. The channel bottom is very soft consisting of decomposed organic material" seeing a channel which was just over 12 inches at most. Sure enough after taking an elevation photo and fell 4 feet into muck, good thing I'm over 6 feet or this could have been a bigger deal. Forgot to take a picture of the hole afterwards.

The rest of the inspection went smoothly tho and we were able to finish up and head down the street to our next bridge. 

Much like the last bridge, this is also a rolled steel beam bridge with a timber deck and also spans 59.5 feet over Abbott Run. This bridge was rebuilt in 2007 and replaced the existing bridge which was built in 1886. The original built up steel thru pony truss remains for aesthetic purposes and carries its self weight.

The bridge was quite noisy with a loose timber plank that had missing clamps on the underside to the steel beams. While wading in the channel we got freaked out when something swam between our legs and through the mucky water, but after we realized it was a fish we had a good laugh.