Location Columbus, OH
Client Ohio Department of Transportation
Services Construction Management, Estimating & Cost Management, Project Management
Project Value $30 million
Hill provided construction management and inspection services for this bridge replacement involving construction of a 700 LF, 3-span bridge carrying Main Street over the Scioto River in Columbus, OH. The original Main Street Bridge was a multiple-span, art-deco, open-spandrel concrete deck arch bridge, built in 1937. After years of degradation due to weather and traffic, the bridge was deemed unfit for use and closed. Wanting an iconic structure to replace the old bridge, the city of Columbus contracted Dr. Spiro Pollalis, professor of design technology and management at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design to design the bridge.
The 400 foot center span is supported by an inclined, single-rib, tied-arch superstructure (span-to-rise ratio of 6.6:1), constructed of an asymmetrical steel box beam. Pinned structural steel “L” brackets and cables hang from the arch to support a cantilevered box beam with concrete deck on one side of the arch for vehicular traffic and a cantilevered concrete deck on the other side of the arch for pedestrian traffic. The steel arch is supported on two pier load transfer beams.
Hill’s services included full-time bridge inspection, measuring and tracking pay quantities, helping ensure the contractor’s activities were performed in accordance with contract documents, managing material testing operations and personnel, reviewing extra work items including claims for additional compensation and extra time, reviewing monthly pay requests, and coordination with ODOT, the designer, and City of Columbus personnel.
Our support also included review and approval of various design and construction alternates, including shoring and formwork requirements; inspection of various construction elements including substructure abutment “plinth” placement and post-tensioning procedures; oversight of senior inspector and inspectors; inspection of steel deck tubs and concrete deck placement; review of contractor-designed river crossing and associated operations, including substructure and superstructure construction; review of contractor-proposed construction sequences and means and methods for contract conformance; review of inspector and senior inspector’s daily reports; review of pay applications, change orders, and extra work orders; conducting CPM schedule reviews; and preparation of cost estimates and time-impact analysis for proposed design and construction changes.
The Main Street Bridge is the only one of its kind in the U.S.: The bridge’s unique inclined, single-rib-tied arch design required an inspection team that understood the unique engineering challenges of the design to deliver the project as planned.
