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ng Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire,
Rhode Island and Vermont Since 1936
ISTORIC RHODE ISLAND
BRIDGES RECONSTRUCTED
Northern Construction removes
timber superstructures but preserves
massive stonework under contract
with RIDOT
By Paul Fournier
T
deteriorating river bridges in
southern Rhode Island are being.
reconstructed meticulously to
preserve the historic appearance of
their massive stone walls while meeting cur­
rent state and federal structural codes.
Northern Construction Service LLC of
Palmer, Mass., has a $2.22-million contract
with the Rhode Island Department of Trans­
portation (RIDOT) to replace the timber
superstructure of the spans over the Wood
River and also retain and improve supporting
WO
stonework ­ longtime landmarks in the Wyo­
HUB Foundation uses a Soilmec PSM-1350 rig to drill pipe pile holes
ming Village Historic District in Washington
during Wyoming Village bridge work by Northern Construction for RIDOT
County. Wyoming Village adjoins the Wood
River primarily in the town of Richmond,
but extends northward across the river into the town of Hopkinton.
RIDOT closed the two rural bridges, which had been posted earlier
for reduced weight limits, in March 2009 after inspections revealed
significant deterioration.
~
"Safety is our top priority with Rhode Island's bridges," RIDOT di­
;SITE-~
rector Michael P. Lewis said. "While we regret any inconvenience these
ONEXPO-CON/ ~TRUCTI.
closings and restrictions may cause, we must institute these changes
AGG 2011 exhibits
ONV
until repairs can be made."
have been dismantled
""
Built in 1932, with one span rehabilitated in 1960 and the other in
and put away for three
1984, the structures carry Bridge Street over the Wood River on the
years. This year's show ended with an over­
Hopkinton-Richmond boundary and are separated by a small island in
whelmingly positive mood. Despite continued
the river. RIDOT said deteriorated conditions had been observed in
uncertainty in U.S. construction markets and the
overall economy, industry professionals expressed
the northernmost bridge, Bridge No. 43 (Wyoming North) in Hopkin­
hopeful optimism for a sustained U.S. upturn in
ton, but closed Bridge No. 44 (Wyoming South) in Richmond as well
the coming months, while global sales continue to
because the two spans are so close together.
be strong.
CONEXPO·CON/AGG and IFPE
2011 Were A Resounding
Success
C
Continued on page 5 »
Continued on page 3 »
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May 2011
Page 5
Preserving History
The entire project, which covers about 600 ft. of roadway including bridges and
approaches, was designed by civil engineers Dewberry- Goodkind Inc. of Boston. It
is being funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
James Orr, RIDOT resident engineer, said the old rimber superstructures had
been slated for replacement with precast, pre-stressed box beams, but the 'agency
decided to preserve the appearance of the stonework as' well.
"RIDOT wanted to maintain the historic character of the bridges," said the 20­
year RIDOT veteran.
New Abutments, Longer Bridges
Northern Construction crews began work at the site in July 2010 under the su­
pervision of Sean Hoey, project superintendent.
To facilitate existing bridge demolition, the contractor constructed a temporary
bridge of steel beams and timber mats that served as a working platform for Im­
peratore Crane of Cranston, R.I. Imperatore demolished Bridge 43's superstructure
first, using a 60-ton Link Belt truck crane to remove the timber span's 4-in. by 12­
in. deck planks and 8-in. by 16-in strin'gers. Original bridge abutments were left in
place, but new abutments for the precast box beams were built several feet behind
the old ones.
Specifications called for piles to be installed to support new abutments. Subcon­
tractor HUB Foundation Co. Inc. of Harvard, Mass., drilled the 12.75-in. O.D. steel
pipe piles using a Soilmec PSM-1350 hydraulic drilling rig. Twelve piles were drilled
about four-ft. six-in. into bedrock for each new abutment and filled with concrete.
Constructing new abutments behind the original ones effectively increased the
lengths of the two bridge spans and shortened the island roadway. Original bridge
spans were approximately 42 ft. for Wyoming South and 66 ft. for Wyoming North,
while the new spans are approximately 66 ft. and 84 ft., respectively. In addition~ the
bridge travel widths were expanded from about 28 ft. including two 12-ft. vehicle
lanes and a 3-ft. sidewalk, to approximately 31 ft. including two 13-ft. vehicle lanes
and a 5-ft. sidewalk.
"RIDOT wanted to maintain the
historic character of the bridges."
James Orr, RIDOT resident engineer
lmperatore Crane's 60-ton Link Belt truck crane removes timber
decking and stringers during demolition ofBridge 44.
Left: Marino's' Liebherr crane places pre-stressed beam supplied by
Oldcastle-Rotondo on Bridge 43 for RIDOT bridge replacement
designed by Dewberry-Goodkind Inc.
oaks Can Be Deceiving
To preserve the historic appearance of the bridges, noted Orr, the contract speci­
fied that existing fieldstone retaining walls on either side of the roadway remain in
place but lowered in height by removing several courses of top stone, and new stone
retaining walls built outside the old ones. Workers also removed existing abutment
eam seats, pier caps and several courses of stone to get down to specified elevations.
All stone work was performed by subcontractor FC Construction Corp. of West­
ort, Mass. Stone removed and stockpiled on site as well as stone imported from
IDOT's highway demolition projects stockpiles was used to build the new walls.
C stone masons re-pointed the four existing fieldstone abutments and the three
xisting stone river piers.
The design of the new bridges makes it appear that the old abutments and river
piers' are still functioning structurally, but they are non-load bearing. When FC
Inasons removed stone block at the tops of piers and abutments, they allowed for
hort indiscernible gaps between the tops of new concrete caps for these structures
nd the bottoms of new beams. Roadway loads will actually be transferred by beams
o the new abutments.
t
A concrete cap is removed from a river pier after which FC Construction Corp.
removed several courses ofstone to lower pier height.
Page 6
New England Construction
Careful Digging For Flowable Fill
According ro project superintendent Hoey, the most challenging aspect of this
job was excavating on the island within old stone walls. "We had to dig down care­
fully about 20 ft. to ledge right behind those old walls," he said. "And that hole was
about 60 ft. long by 30 ft. wide."
Next, controlled low-strength concrete material - otherwise known as flowable
fill - was poured inside the entire area between the new outer walls from bedrock
up to roughly four ft. beneath the bottom elevation of new concrete approach slabs.
'''We filled the area with flowable fill anywhere from 7 ft. to 11 ft. deep," Hoey
said. "It took about 750 cubic yds. of material. This provided a stable base for the
roadway and gave the stone walls a grouted appearance."
Rhode Island Ready Mix LLC of Wyoming, R.I., supplied flowable fill and all
other ready-mixed concrete for the job, including the 14-in.-thick concrete ap­
pwach slabs for each bridge. An affiliated compa'ny, Richmond Sand & Stone, pro­
vided sand and gravel used for backfill over flowable fill, for the roadway base, and
elsewhere on the project as needed. Both companies are represented by Tim Walsh.
New retaining walls built by FC Construction were stabilized by
some 750 cubic yds. offlowable fill supplied by Rhode Island Ready Mix.
Setting Beams Ahead
Of Schedule
With new abutments 'constructed, crews
began placing precast, pre-stressed box beams for
Bridge 43 in November 2010. Beams are manu­
factured by the Rehoboth, Mass., facility of Old­
castle Precast Inc. Marino Crane, a Division of
Barnhart NE, provided a SOO-ton-capacity Lieb­
herr hydraulic truck crane for beam erection.
All maior
CREDIT CARDS accepted
Beams are placed on Bridge 44 shortly before
job was shut down in February due to weather.
35 Stilson Road, Wyoming, RI (Ju~t oR intersedion of Rts. 95 & 138)
All maior CREDIT CARDS accepted
401-539-7770
Box beam cross section dimensions are three­
ft. three-in. tall by either three-ft. or four-ft.
wide. Nine beams were placed between the abut­
"!)lents, with two of the narrower beams book­
ending seven, four-ft. beams. Bridge 43 beams
are approximately 86 ft. long and weigh about 42
tons. Bridge 44 beams are about 68 ft. long and
tip the scales at approximately 35 rons.
Beams are butted together, post-tensioned,
grouted and post~tensioned again. Specifications
call for a pre-formed waterproofing mem brane to
be placed over the beams, topped by three inches
of bituminous concrete pavement consisting of
a 1Y2-in. binder and 1Y2-in. wearing course. The
island roadway pavement is a little thicker, con­
sisting of a two-in. binder and two-in. wearing
course.
All Bridge 43 beams had been installed an
two were already in place on Bridge 44 when
the job was shut down in mid-F bruary due to
weather. At that time the project was running
65 days ahead of schedule, according to Hoey.
The contract completion date is September 23,
2011. __