16 Mar 11
Delaware River commission announces completion of repair project
The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission (DRJTBC) has announced that it has completed a six-month project aimed at repairing and strengthening the masonry substructures that support 12 of its 20 bridges.
The substructure repair and scour remediation project included a series of rehabilitation measures at bridge piers and abutments that had been damaged by river currents and flooding. The work included debris removal, concrete and crack repairs, masonry repairs, and reconstruction of bridge foundations.
A major facet of the work was scour remediation at piers, to place stone and aggregate to replace sediments that had been washed away. DRJTBC pointed out that scour is the leading cause of bridge collapses in the USA, accounting for 60% of highway bridge failures nationwide, according to a Federal Highway Administration report.
The work was carried out through two contracts that were competitively bid and awarded by the commission in July 2010. Bridges in the area between the Lumberville-Raven Rock Pedestrian Toll-Supported Bridge in the north to the Trenton-Morrisville (Route 1) Toll Bridge in the south were addressed under a US$5.89 million contract with Kyle Conti Construction.
The work between the Milford-Montague Toll Bridge in the north to the Uhlerstown-Frenchtown Toll-Supported Bridge in the south was carried out under a US$4.13 million contract with AP Construction.
Construction management and inspection services were provided by Trumbull Construction Management Services an amount not to exceed US$727,004.90.
A second-phase project now moving through the planning process to address substructure issues at eight bridges and is expected to be advertised for bids in the spring.