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Indiana Division

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2012 Accomplishments Report

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National Leadership

Every Day Counts (EDC)

Working with our state and local partners, Indiana established a 17 member State Transportation Innovation Council (STIC) for support and guidance of EDC. The STIC has members from 13 different Indiana agencies/organizations.

Furthermore, we focused on the advancement of EDC technological processes. Warm mix asphalt is now allowed for use on all Indiana projects. It is industry driven with the contractors gaining a cost savings advantage which has provided taxpayer savings due to better pricing. In 2011, 1.81 million tons of warm mix asphalt was placed, 69.6% of all hot mix asphalt (HMA) produced on INDOT contracts which is up from 67.4% in 2010. Approximately 50 asphalt plants are now using the water injection method to produce foamed asphalt as warm mix asphalt.

Indiana also continues to make progress in the deployment of Safety Edge. INDOT has a Safety Edge Specification in the form of a Recurring Special Provision (RSP) which is being incorporated into all asphalt pavement projects that meet requirements: "A HMA safety edge shall be constructed at locations where a dense graded intermediate mixture or a surface mixture is constructed adjacent to an aggregate or earth shoulder." Language regarding the placement of the Safety Edge has also been placed in the revised Indiana Design Manual. Projects using the Safety Edge have been let and are expected to be under construction by the summer 2012.

Indiana is utilizing Accelerated Bridge Construction techniques to replace the Milton-Madison Bridge, a major Ohio River crossing, which was partially funded using TIGER 1 funds. The Division has provided technical assistance, conducted construction inspections, and conducted a steel fabrication review. Through the innovative design and construction methods, the existing bridge will remain open for all but 10 days during construction. Using a "truss sliding" method, a new 2,426 foot long truss bridge will be slid into place atop the existing rehabilitated piers. As a result of the existing bridge remaining open, the Division had to ensure the safety of the existing bridge by reviewing and assessing Fracture Critical inspections and load ratings, conducting bridge inspections, and coordinating bi-state (with Kentucky) efforts for managing the bridge. The new bridge is anticipated to be open to traffic in 2013.

The Division continued to expand the "Planning & Environmental Linkages" initiative by identifying tasks that could "bridge" the planning and environmental phases of project development. In PY 2012, the Division trained the MPOs on how to complete the initial National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis, sometimes referred to as "Red Flag Investigations." This has helped further the understanding of planners on how the NEPA process works, and is intended to help reduce the number of projects selected that may be controversial. Those controversial projects that are considered will at the very least, have their schedules and budgets adjusted, based upon the potential for natural or human environmental impacts. For those MPOs which have begun conducting the "red flag investigations", it has been noted that the process may shorten the time required to complete a project and avoid the cost of repeating the investigation as a project advances.

The Division is continuing to work with our transportation partners to implement additional techniques such as those described to accelerate the purchase of right-of-way and clear utilities.

Livability

The Division encouraged the Indianapolis and the Lafayette/West Lafayette MPOs to finalize their Complete Streets policies. We continued to work on the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT)/United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)/Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) partnership in Indianapolis; but no additional progress was made as the amount of funding provided was insufficient to warrant significant action by the parties involved.

Alternate Bid Policy for Pavement Designs

An Alternate Bid Policy for Pavement Designs was successfully deployed at the state and local level. Originally, the policy was implemented at the state level ensuring pavement options close in life cycle costs were competitively bid, utilizing market forces to ensure cost effective utilization of pavement funding. This resulted in an average savings of 9% on INDOT projects. Now an alternate pavement design analysis is being required for all projects, including LPA projects, with new pavement, pavement replacement, or major rehabilitation with mainline pavement of more than 10,000 yd2. If the pavement design analysis indicates a cost difference within 10%, an alternate pavement bid is required unless technical justifications deem otherwise.

Training Provided to INDOT and other Transportation Partners

In PY 2012, the Division’s staff organized, coordinated, or provided the following training and workshops to educate Indiana on Federal requirements, new technologies, or other areas which would benefit Indiana’s transportation community:

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Page last modified on April 21, 2017
Federal Highway Administration | 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE | Washington, DC 20590 | 202-366-4000