ROUTE 152 OVER I-95
North Attleborough, Massachusetts
C&C Consulting Engineers LLC has been responsible for complete engineering services for the total replacement of this five hundred foot, five-span bridge over I-95. Recognized as a high priority by the Massachusetts Highway Department (MHD), the bridge had one of the lowest ratings in the Commonwealth and posed a significant hazard. Consequently, at the request of MHD, the design was “fast tracked” in order to begin construction in 2001.
Specific tasks included field inspection; load rating; seismic analysis, in addition to contract documents. Tasks also involved utility coordination directly with the owners, including water, CATV, gas electric, telephone and fire alarm.
Originally, the MHD had intended to replace only the deck; however, our thorough pre-design inspection revealed that the abutments were also deteriorated to the point where total replacement was more economical than restoration. Based upon our recommendation the Department eventually decided to replace all components of the bridge except the existing abutments.
Due to the high traffic volumes at this location, it was determined that lane closures for traffic management were not sufficient. Consequently, a one-mile, two million dollar reversible median detour was designed that allowed traffic to remain unimpeded while individual spans of the bridge were removed and replaced with the new structure.
At the onset of construction we were again called upon to make an inspection and report after heavy truck loadings caused a significant “blowout” of the concrete deck. There was a concern by the field engineers that if traffic were shifted to make way for the first phase of reconstruction, the greater concentration of loads would result in more frequent, and perhaps more severe “blowouts”. After considering the situation, we recommended a repair program that would give the Department the added life in the old deck that would be required to finish the reconstruction project. Reconstruction was completed in July of 2005
Client: Massachusetts Highway Department
