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Prefabricated Bridge Elements and Systems

SH 66 over Mitchell Gulch

LocationSH 66 over Mitchell Gulch between Franktown and Castle Rock
StateCO
Completion Date2002
Contact PersonWes Goff P.E.
Phone: (303) 757-9116
Email: wes.goff@dot.state.co.us
DescriptionOriginally designed as 3 box culverts, the Colorado Department of Transportation accepted a value-engineering proposal for this replacement bridge to minimize traffic impact. The alternate structure has a single span with side-by-side precast slab girders welded onto precast abutments and wings welded to driven-steel H piles. Piles were driven in advance outside the existing bridge. Railing was precast into the outside girders. Except for the steel H-pile supports, the entire bridge substructure was composed of precast concrete elements. Each abutment consisted of a lower and upper backwall unit. Each of the four wingwalls for the bridge was a separate precast piece. The precast substructure units were attached in the field by welding together embedded plates precast into the elements. The bridge superstructure consisted of eight precast deck girder units each 5'-4" wide, 1'-6" deep, and 38'-4" long. The deck girders were placed on the completed abutments and then transversely post-tensioned and grouted together. The outside deck girders were constructed with integrated bridge railing to avoid the need for a separate railing installation operation in the field. Construction detours as a result of this project were reduced by the value-engineering proposal from an estimated two-to-three months to less than 48 hours.
PhotoPhoto of SH 66 over Mitchell Gulch. Click image for larger view
Prefabricated Elementstotal
Other KeywordsPrecast railing, precast retaining walls,totally prefabricated bridges
AdvantagesMinimized traffic impact, improved work-zone safety by reducing work-zone time from several months to a weekend.
Related Document 1Construction Photos (PDF, 0.4 mb)
HTML Version
Photo CreditsColorado Department of Transportation
Updated: 09/27/2011

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