Attachment No 1

Innovative Bridge Research and Deployment Program

2007 Program Information

(March 28, 2007)

Background

The IBRC program, the predecessor of the IBRD program, was established by the Congress in the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) (Pub. L. 105-178). This program was continued in SAFETEA-LU. However, in section 5202 of SAFETEA-LU, Congress removed two goals of the IBRC program: Goal (E), the development of cost-effective and innovative techniques to separate vehicle and pedestrian traffic from railroad traffic; and Goal (F), the development of new nondestructive bridge evaluation technologies and techniques. In addition, this section added three goals to the IBRD Program: Goal (F), the documentation and wide dissemination of objective evaluations of the performance and benefits of these innovative designs, materials, and construction methods; Goal (G), the effective transfer of resulting information and technology; and Goal (H), the development of improved methods to detect bridge scour and economical bridge foundation designs that will withstand bridge scour. The eight goals of IBRD are listed under ELIGIBILITY of this Attachment.

Funding

Funds are provided to the States under the IBRD program to pay the Federal share of the cost of projects that demonstrate innovative accelerated bridge design and construction technology, and the application of innovative material technology in the repair, rehabilitation, replacement, or new construction of bridges and other highway structures. Congress authorized $13.1 million per year from fiscal years 2005 through 2009 for the IBRD program, $4.125 million of which is designated for high performance concrete technology research and deployment. The actual amount available can vary in yearly congressional appropriations. Portion of the Funds is available for bridge projects that meet one or more of the eight program goals as listed in Section 5202 (b) of SAFETEA-LU, Public Law 109-59.

Federal Share:

In accordance with 23 U.S.C. 503(b) (5), the Secretary shall determine the Federal share of the costs for any project eligible under this program. The FHWA determines the Federal share for each project considering several factors, including the innovation parts of the project, the amount of funds requested for the project, and the available funding for the program. It is the goal to fund as many projects as possible at a 100 percent Federal share; however, because of the above considerations, some projects may be funded at a lower Federal share.

Eligibility:

• Funds are available for bridge projects that meet one or more of the eight program goals listed in 23 U.S.C. Section 503(b)(2):

  Goals-the goals of the program shall include:

  1. The development of new, cost-effective, innovative highway bridge applications;
  2. The development of construction techniques to increase safety and reduce construction time and traffic congestion;
  3. The development of engineering design criteria for innovative products, materials, and structural systems for use in highway bridges and structures;
  4. The reduction of maintenance costs and life-cycle costs of bridges, including costs of new construction, replacement or rehabilitation of deficient bridges;
  5. The development of highway bridges and structures that will withstand natural disasters:
  6. The documentation and wide dissemination of objective evaluations of the performance and benefits of these innovative designs, materials, and construction methods;
  7. The effective transfer of resulting information and technology; and
  8. The development of improved methods to detect bridge scour and economical bridge foundation designs that will withstand bridge scour.
  
  
• The project may be on any public roadway, including State and locally funded projects.
• Funds may be used for costs of preliminary engineering, repair, rehabilitation, or construction of bridges or other highway structures, and costs of project performance evaluation and performance monitoring of the structure following construction.

Selection Criteria:

The FHWA will use the following criteria to evaluate the submitted candidates for selection:

1. Projects that will meet one or more of the goals of the program in 23 U.S.C. Section 503(b) with a particular emphasis on safety and reducing congestion;
2. Projects that will incorporate innovative materials and/or products that are readily available;
3. Projects that have been funded for design and for construction or rehabilitation;
4. Projects with designs, materials, and construction methods that have broad application;
5. Projects that leverage Federal funds with other public or private resources, will be given preference; and
6. Projects that are part of a large right of way improvement project.

In addition, the FHWA may consider:

1. State priorities - For States that submit more than one project application, consideration is also given to the individual State's priorities if specified.
2. Availability of innovative material and/or innovative material product - and projects that apply an innovative material and/or a product made of an innovative material, which is readily available for application in other projects and in other States.
3. Expeditious completion of project in a timely manner. For large-scale projects, consideration is given to the State's total funding plan to expedite the completion of the project.
4. Leveraging of private or other public funding - Because the annual requests for funding far exceed the available IBRD discretionary funds, commitment of other funding sources to complement the requested IBRD discretionary funding is also a consideration.

Solicitation Procedure:

Each year, a memorandum is sent from the FHWA Headquarters Office of Bridge Technology to the FHWA division offices requesting the submission of candidate projects for a given fiscal year's funding. This solicitation is also published on the IBRD Web at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/ibrd/. The State DOTs coordinate with local and Federal agencies, universities and colleges, private sector entities, and nonprofit organizations within their respective States in order to develop viable candidate projects. The State DOTs submit the candidate applications to the FHWA division offices. After review and consultation with the DOT, the division office sends the acceptable candidate projects to the Director, Office of Bridge Technology (Attn: HIBT-1). Candidate projects for FY 2007 funding will be due in FHWA Headquarters on April 30, 2007.

The candidate project applications are reviewed and evaluated by a selection panel composed of representatives from the FHWA Office of Bridge Technology and the FHWA Office of Infrastructure R&D, and an allocation plan is prepared for presentation of the candidate projects to the Federal Highway Administrator, for the final selection of projects for funding.

Submission Requirements:

State DOTs submit applications for funding under this program. A prescribed format for a project submission is provided in the format of a project application form, and the following information should be included to properly evaluate the candidate projects. Those applications that do not include this information will be considered incomplete and will be rejected.

• State in which the project is located;
• Ranking of the project as determined by the State DOT, if more than one project is submitted;
• County in which the project is located;
• Structure Name & Location - Provide the bridge name (if appropriate) and describe the specific location of the project, including route number/name and mileposts (if applicable), and feature(s) crossed by the bridge;
• Structure Description - Provide a description of the structure including type (e.g., continuous prestressed concrete box girder), number of spans, total length, and total width (out to out);
• Innovation - Specify the innovation (e.g., SCC, crack free decks, ASR prevention and mitigation, deep foundation techniques, rapid method of QC/QA for foundations and walls, techniques to mitigate stream instability and scour, and /or investigation of bridges with unknown foundations.) that is being used in the project. Statement for safety and congestion benefits for each project must be included;
• Proposed Work - Describe the specific application of the innovation proposed in this particular request, and whether this is a complete project or part of a larger project;
• Program Goals - The State's submission should show how the application of the innovation would meet one or more of the IBRD program goals with an emphasis on reducing congestion and safety as stated above;
• Letting Date - The proposed letting date for the main project should be specified, in which the proposed candidate is a part;
• Estimated Costs - Provide the estimated cost of the project as follows: cost of the entire project; cost of the innovative portion of the projects, as well as preliminary engineering costs associated with the innovative portion of the project; and the cost of proposed activities to monitor and document the performance of the innovative application;
• Amount of Federal IBRD Funds Requested - Indicate the amount of Federal IBRD funds being requested; and
• Commitment of Other Funds - Indicate the amounts and sources of any private or other public funding being provided as part of this project. Only indicate those amounts of funding having documented commitments. The submission must include written confirmation of these commitments from the entity controlling the funds.

Application Guidance:

• Priority ranking - Each State, in cooperation with the FHWA division office, is requested to prioritize their candidate projects.
• Funding for repeated applications - The States are encouraged not to submit candidate projects, which essentially duplicate a previous project using the same material in the same type of application if that original project was funded with IBRC funds.
• High cost projects - Subject to special considerations, high cost projects may be funded at less than 100% of a State's requested amount. In FY 2007, the threshold amount will depend on the total number of eligible projects submitted as well as on the total amount of funds requested.

Decision Process for Funding:

Projects are to be screened for eligibility first by the FHWA division office and then evaluated by the Headquarters IBRD selection panel. Another consideration is:

The State must commit to building the projects for which IBRD funds are awarded. The IBRD funds will be de-obligated if the funds cannot be expended as intended. (Note: For FY 2005 (IBRC), the maximum funds provided for each acceptable application were $400,000 For FY 2006 (IBRD), the amount will be $250,000. Funds for FY2007 have yet to be determined.)

State Department of Transportation's Responsibilities:

• Coordinate with State, local, and Federal agencies, universities and colleges, private sector entities and nonprofit organizations within the State to develop viable candidate projects;
• Ensure that the applications for candidate projects meet the submission requirements;
• Establish priorities for other candidate projects; and
• Submit completed applications to the local FHWA division office in a timely manner so that the submission deadline can be met.

FHWA Division Office Responsibilities:

• Provide the solicitation memorandum and the program information to the State DOTs;
• Request candidate projects be submitted by the State to the FHWA division office in time to meet the submission deadline established in the solicitation;
• Help applicants complete information required in the application form;
• Review and prioritize all candidate applications submitted by the State prior to sending them to the FHWA Headquarters to ensure that they are complete and meet the submission requirements;
• Submit the candidate applications to FHWA Headquarters by the established submission deadline. Submission of these applications will be by ONLINE submission only. Late submittals, and insufficient technical and/or cost information will not be considered.
• Record required application data in the IBRD online database via the IBRD home page at http://fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/ibrd/application

FHWA Headquarters Program Office Responsibilities:

• Request candidates from the States through the annual solicitation memorandum;
• Review candidate project submissions and compile program and project information for preparation of the allocation plan;
• Submit the allocation plan to the Federal Highway Administrator for approving final project selection; and
• Allocate funds for the selected projects.

FHWA Headquarters Program Office Contact:

Chien-Tan Chang
Senior Bridge Engineer - Planning and Coordination
Office of Bridge Technology (HIBT-1)
Email: chien-tan.chang@dot.gov
Phone: (202) 366-6749 Fax: (202) 366-3077

---

Attachment No. 2

2007 Application for Innovative Bridge Research and Deployment Program

State

State's Priority Ranking: # of

Project type (new construction, replacement, rehabilitation, or repair)

NBI structure number

County

Structure Name and/or Identifying Description (e.g., Number/Name of Route on the Bridge and Feature Crossed)

Structure description (e.g., bridge type, number of spans, length, width, material)

Innovative designs, materials and construction methods (describe the designs, materials, and/or construction methods, how they are used and how the project meets one or more of the program goals). Each application (proposal) shall include and address the following items:

1. Project Name:
2. Project classification/technology: such as, SCC, ABC, Geotechnology, Hydraulics/Scour etc.
3. Project Summary:
4. Project Description:
   1. Describe designs, materials and construction methods;
   2. Describe how it is used and how the projects meet one or more of the program goals including a statement on safety and congestion benefits (also please see the cover memorandum for details); and
   3. Technical merits (technical details, quality of innovation, technically sound, cost effective, likelihood of having a lasting impact on the State, and likelihood of having a national lasting impact.) Note: Please limit the narrative (proposal) on this section to 2 pages.

Schedule for start of work (month/year):

Cost Estimates:

Total project cost: P

Cost of "innovative material" portion of the construction A

Preliminary engineering cost, if requested B

Cost of innovative material performance evaluation (e.g., for a 2-year post-construction period) C

PE costs + construction costs + evaluation costs = (A + B + C) T

Total Federal Program Funds Requested $

State Department of Transportation Contact Person

Name:
Title:
Agency:
Ph:
Fax:
E-mail:

Local Agency Contact Person (if applicable):

Name:
Title:
Agency:
Ph:
Fax:
E-mail:

FHWA Division Office Contact Person:

Name:
Title:
Agency:
Ph:
Fax:
E-mail:

---

Attachment No. 3

Innovative Bridge Research and Deployment Program

Electronic Data Submission Requirements (Division Office Use Only)

The Division Office is requested to input the following basic application data to the IBRD database via the FHWA Web site. Separate instructions will be provided at a later date for submitting the information directly via the Web site. Those applications that do not include these items will be considered incomplete and returned for additional data.

• State in which the project is located;
• Priority Ranking of the project as determined by the State department of transportation;
• County in which the project is located;
• Congressional District in which the project is located;
• Name of Congressional Representative in whose district the project is located;
• Structure Name & Location - Provide the bridge name (if appropriate) and describe the specific location of the project, including route number/name and mileposts, if applicable and feature(s) crossed by the bridge.
• Structure Description - Provide a description of the structure including type (e.g., continuous prestressed concrete box girder), number of spans, total length and width (out to out);
• Innovative designs, materials and construction methods - Specify what innovative designs, materials, and construction methods are being applied in the project and what structural elements are involved (e.g., girders) and the application (e.g., superstructure).
  1. Project Name:
  2. Project classification/technology: such as, ABC, Geotechnology, Hydraulics/Scour etc.
  3. Project Summary:
  4. Project Description:
     • Describe designs, materials and construction methods;
     • Describe how it is used and how the projects meet one or more of the program goals including a statement on safety and congestion reduction benefits (also please see the cover memorandum for details); and
     • Technical merits (technical details, quality of innovation, technically sound, cost effective, likelihood of having a lasting impact on the State, and likelihood of having national lasting impact.) Note: Please limit the narrative (proposal) on this section to 2 pages.
• Letting Date - The proposed letting date for the project should be specified; and
• Estimated Costs - Provide the estimated cost of the project as follows:
  • Cost of the entire project.
  • Cost of the construction of just the innovative portion of the project.
  • Cost of preliminary engineering associated with the innovative portion of the project.
  • Cost of proposed activities to monitor and document the performance of the innovative material application.

Also include 2007 APPLICATION FOR INNOVATIVE BRIDGE RESEARCH AND DEPLOYMENT PROGRAM in attachment No. 2.

FHWA Headquarters Program Office Contact:

Chien-Tan Chang
Senior Bridge Engineer - Planning and Coordination
Office of Bridge Technology (HIBT-1)
Email: chien-tan.chang@dot.gov
Phone: (202) 366-6749 Fax: (202) 366-3077