The Time for Accelerated Construction is Now
By King W. Gee
As the Nation's system of highways and bridges ages, the necessity
of repairing and replacing the highway infrastructure means that "Work
Zone Ahead" alerts are a daily sight to many U.S. motorists. The
rise in the number of work zones is matched by increasing congestion,
as more cars squeeze the capacity of existing roads. To prevent gridlock
and preserve and maintain our highway system with the least impact on
the motoring public, accelerated construction techniques are gaining
in popularity across the country.
In Oklahoma, replacing the Interstate 40 bridge on the Arkansas river
struck by a barge in May was of vital urgency to both the State and
the entire south-central region of the country (see article, page 1).
This urgency led to an unprecedented accelerated construction schedule
that had the bridge reopened to traffic last month. The Oklahoma Department
of Transportation employed several innovative measures to speed up the
project, including A+B bidding (cost + time), where contractors bid
on both the work itself (A) and how quickly they believe they can complete
the work (B).
Disaster situations aren't the only impetus for accelerated construction
schedules. Day-to-day road rehabilitation and reconstruction now justifies
the use of accelerated techniques and innovative materials. Faced with
three major intersections on U.S. 395 that needed to be completely reconstructed,
the Washington State Department of Transportation took the unconventional
approach and shut each intersection down completely for one weekend
to perform the necessary repair work. The intersections were reconstructed
with a high early strength portland cement concrete mix that allowed
the roads to be opened to traffic within about 12 hours. In each case,
the roads were back in service within 72 hours. The project contractor
got in, got the job done, and impacted the public for just a short time.
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is committed to supporting
the highway community in exploring and adopting accelerated construction
techniques such as these. As the Oklahoma and Washington State projects
have shown us, accelerated construction is not a traditional technology
but rather an approach to highway construction that draws on everything
from using innovative contracting procedures and new materials and practices
to building extended life pavements and bridges to cut down on construction
time. Also critical to the success of accelerated construction projects
are media and publicity campaigns that keep area residents and businesses
informed about reconstruction plans and let motorists know about alternate
routes.
FHWA is participating in the work of the American Association of State
Highway and Transportation Officials' Technology Implementation Group
(TIG), which has made accelerated construction one of its focus technologies.
Recent pilot workshops in Pennsylvania and Indiana, cosponsored by the
Transportation Research Board's Task Force on Accelerating Innovation,
explored how these States can incorporate accelerated construction techniques
into the rehabilitation of primary corridors while maintaining quality
and safety (see article). The TIG is now looking
at how to build on these pilot workshops to further assist States in
implementing the accelerated construction concept. You can find out
more about the TIG's work at www.aashtotig.org.
The "Work Zones Ahead" signs aren't going to disappear soon…but
as Oklahoma, Washington, and many other States are demonstrating, we
can make work zones' duration shorter and traveling around or through
them easier. It's what our customers want, and with accelerated construction,
it's what we can give them.
King W. Gee is the Associate Administrator for FHWA's Office
of Infrastructure.
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Articles in this issue:
Accelerated Bridge Repairs: Meeting the Challenge in Oklahoma
The Time for Accelerated Construction is Now
Workshops Explore Innovative Approaches to Accelerated Construction
Making Work Zones Work for You
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