1996 BRIDGE AWARD WINNER: OHIO STREET BRIDGE OVER CONRAIL BUFFALO CREEK YARD Owner: City of Buffalo Engineer: NYSDOT - Region 5 Contractor: Nichols, Long & Moore The Ohio Street Bridge over the Conrail Buffalo Creek rail yards is an excellent example of modern bridge engineering technology and contracting practices to solve a very complex infrastructure problem. The bridge is a 446 ft long, 3-span curved steel girder structure in the City of Buffalo. The project presented numerous conflicting challenges. The existing bridge was in serious need of repair or replacement and major work could not have been forestalled without posting load restriction. The rail yard presented difficult site conditions to design and build around. The rail facilities and their required clearances greatly affected bridge layout design options. Fast and smooth coordination with Conrail was necessary in order to receive the approvals to build at the location of recently abandoned trackage. The bridge design incorporated a host of unique features not seen very often such as, haunched curved continuous steel girders, a lightweight concrete deck and incorporation of existing large diameter caissons into new pier foundations. The commercial urban location, coupled with the need to have an off-site detour, made it absolutely necessary to accelerate the construction schedule as much as possible. The decision was made to use A+B bidding to mandate a quick completion of the new structure. The new bridge was opened to traffic on October 1, 1996 - just 120 days after the old structure was shut down to the public. Note: The above project description was taken from the award submission.
Website created by: ABCD WNY ChapterPlease direct all questions and comments regarding this site to: kcox@monroecounty.gov Last Updated: January 25, 2008 © 2008 Association for Bridge Construction and Design, WNY |
