A 1950 Washington bridge carrying about 90,000 vehicles a day is getting a $114 million overhaul; engineers will replace its movable span with a fixed one floated into place during a single 56-hour closure
A bridge that has carried Washington traffic for more than seven decades is headed for a major transformation, but commuters may barely notice the most dramatic part of the work. The nearly half-mile-long Northbound I-395 bridge over the Potomac River is set for a $114 million rehabilitation that will replace its movable span with a new fixed structure during one tightly scheduled 56-hour weekend closure, states an online report by Field News. The construction is expected to begin next year, with completion planned for fall 2029, adds the report.
A major rebuild for a 1950 bridge
According to Field News, Skanska USA Civil will lead the design-build project for the District Department of Transportation, working with AECOM and Genesis Structures on the design team. The project is jointly funded by DDOT and the Federal Highway Administration. Built in 1950, the four-lane bridge carries roughly 90,000 vehicles every day and forms part of a five-structure crossing connecting Arlington, Virginia, with Washington, D.C., adds the report.The rehabilitation will go well beyond repairing an aging roadway. One of its central elements is the replacement of the existing 175-foot, double-leaf bascule span, the movable section that allows river traffic to pass.
New span floated into position
As per the report, engineers will use accelerated bridge construction methods to limit disruption to one of the region’s busiest transportation corridors. Instead of constructing the replacement span entirely in place, the new fixed section will be assembled beside the existing bridge. It will then be floated into position during a single 56-hour weekend closure, the report explains.Also, the compressed installation window is expected to require specialised marine equipment, rigging and carefully coordinated construction crews. The project will also replace the vessel protection system around the bascule piers and upgrade bridge barriers to meet modern collision standards. Approach spans will undergo superstructure and substructure rehabilitation, while overhead sign structures, lighting and drainage systems affected by construction will also be replaced, adds the report.
Heavy construction activity through 2029
The bridge sits beside Skanska’s separate Long Bridge North project, a roughly $1 billion effort being delivered with FlatironDragados to expand rail capacity through the same Arlington-Washington corridor. With both projects progressing in the same area, the river crossing zone is expected to remain a significant centre of heavy civil construction through the end of the decade.For contractors and subcontractors, the I-395 rehabilitation is expected to create opportunities across several specialised areas, including marine work, structural steel, traffic control, signage, lighting, drainage and bridge-barrier upgrades. The most unusual phase will be the float-in operation, where decades of bridge history will give way to a new fixed span in less than three days.Image Courtesy: ARL Now
