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Focus

Federal Highway Administration / Publications / Focus / December 2007

Accelerating Infrastructure Innovations

Publication Number: FHWA-HRT-08-009
Date: December 2007
Printable Version (.pdf, 0.3 mb)

Articles in this Issue

The ABCs of a Rapid Bridge Replacement in Utah

Accelerated bridge construction (ABC) techniques cut road closures and detours from 6 months to a single weekend and saved $4 million in road user costs during the Utah Department of Transportation's (UDOT) recent replacement of the 4500 South bridge over the I-215 East Loop in Salt Lake City.

SPMTs: Your Guide to Accelerated Bridge Construction

Lift and drive your prefabricated new bridge to its final location in a matter of minutes with the use of self-propelled modular transporters (SPMTs). As the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) details in its new Manual on Use of Self-Propelled Modular Transporters to Remove and Replace Bridges (Pub. No. FHWA-HIF-07-022), prefabricating bridges offsite under controlled conditions and then rapidly transporting them to their final destination for immediate erection can reduce traffic impacts to a matter of hours or a few days, rather than the months typically required for conventional onsite bridge construction. While in some cases initial construction costs can be higher, the offsetting savings from reduced construction time and user costs can be substantial. Offsite construction also increases worker safety.

FHWA's 2008 Accelerated Bridge Construction Conference: On the Fast Track to Success

Accelerating the deployment of innovative new technologies to significantly improve the driving experience of America's motorists is the goal of the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) upcoming 2008 Accelerated Bridge Construction-Highways for Life conference. Scheduled for March 20-21, 2008, in Baltimore, Maryland, the conference will provide a forum to exchange ideas and experiences within the bridge community's public and private sectors.

A Roadmap to Transportation System Preservation Research

What does the future hold for the Nation's transportation infrastructure? With increasing traffic volumes, aging highways and bridges, and budgets that cannot keep up with demands, transportation agencies face a growing number of challenges. Key to meeting these challenges and maintaining this vital infrastructure are preservation practices that can extend the service life of pavements and bridges. Agencies have enjoyed great success through the use of such practices, but progress is often hampered by gaps in the understanding and implementation of pavement and bridge preservation. "A concentrated effort is needed to conduct research to address these gaps and provide knowledge on how to apply the right preservation action at the right time to the right pavement or bridge," says Jim Sorenson of the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Office of Asset Management.

Excellence in Highway Design 2008

The Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) biennial Excellence in Highway Design Awards Program recognizes outstanding examples of highways, bridges, and other facets of roadway design. FHWA's Office of Program Administration will begin accepting nominations on January 14, 2008, for the 2008 awards. Organizations will be recognized for superior work on projects substantially completed or programs implemented from July 1, 2006, to March 1, 2008.

Attend the SHRP 2 International Symposium on Nondestructive Testing

The Strategic Highway Research Program 2 (SHRP 2), in cooperation with the Forum of European National Highway Research Laboratories, is sponsoring an International Symposium on Nondestructive Testing for Design Evaluation and Construction Inspection. The symposium will be held January 18, 2008, at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, DC, immediately following the Transportation Research Board's (TRB) 87th Annual Meeting.

Highway Technology Calendar

Updated: 06/27/2017
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