Bridge link underway in Texas

In the US state of Texas, work is in hand to build new bridges carrying US-281 over the Colorado River at Marble Falls. The Texas Department of Transportation has set a budget of close to US$30 million to replace the existing Lake Marble Falls Bridge with two new bridges.
March 22, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
New twin bridges at Marle Falls in Texas will carrying US 281 over the Colorado River - image courtesy of Guy Tuttle
In the US state of Texas, work is in hand to build new bridges carrying US-281 over the Colorado River at Marble Falls.

The 3499 Texas Department of Transportation has set a budget of close to US$30 million to replace the existing Lake Marble Falls Bridge with two new bridges. This crossing is some 80km from Austin and the project requires the demolition of the existing steel truss bridge and the construction of twin segmental bridges. The new bridges will be built using the balanced cantilever construction method with end spans constructed on falsework.

Finley Engineering Group (FINLEY) carried out a time-dependent staged analysis of the structure to monitor stresses and expected deflection during construction. The firm revised the segment layout and optimised the post-tensioning layout, which reduced costs and construction time. The analysis process included developing a model, which used Bridge Information Modeling (BrIM). This allowed the synchronisation of the CADD shop drawings with the analysis model, to meet the contractor’s fast-pace construction schedule. The first of the new bridges is under construction at present and is due for completion in mid 2012. The second bridge will be finished in 2014. Archer-Western Contractors is building the two structures and FINLEY’s portion of the project includes bridge design and a full construction engineering package.
Road Structures

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Latin America invests in infrastructure growth
    February 15, 2012
    Travelling in one of the world's most diverse regions is not always easy, but spectacular engineering feats will make life easier as Patrick Smith reports. Five years ago a report from the World Bank noted that infrastructure in most of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) had improved over the previous ten years.
    Read More
  • Major innovations are coming to market in concrete slipforming
    March 6, 2017
    Tough competition is being seen in the specialised market for concrete slipforming machines, with new partnerships and new technology coming to market - Mike Woof writes GOMACO is boosting the versatility of its Commander slipformer further with the development of the new Three-Track Commander IIIx variant. This has been configured to cope with much tighter radii than previous versions of the Commander III, allowing it to slipform a radius of just 610mm. This suits the machine to applications such as sli
    Read More
  • US$73 million Francis Scott Bridge replacement contract
    September 3, 2024
    Kiewit has been awarded a US$73 million Francis Scott Bridge replacement contract.
    Read More
  • Key developments are changing the face of the machine control market
    April 4, 2013
    Various business moves are changing the face of the machine control sector - Mike Woof reports An array of developments, both business moves and new technologies, are changing the focus for the machine control segment of the construction equipment sector. For a long time three firms, Leica Geosystems, Trimble and Topcon, have dominated this segment. The three are retaining their strong positions in the market but are seeing additional competition from Hemisphere and MOBA. Arguably the biggest news is that T
    Read More

Highlighted Content