SR 141/Centre Road Rehabilitation, Greenville, DE
Centre Road is a major traffic artery in Greenville, Delaware which is on the western fringes of the City of Wilmington. Technically known as SR 141, Centre Road connects major population areas of the northern and western suburbs of Wilmington with industrial and residential areas as well as providing access to I-95. This 1.4 mile long section of SR 141 was deteriorating and a rehabilitation of the existing concrete pavement was scheduled by DelDOT. This section of road is a 4-lane divided highway with a mixed grass-and-concrete median separating the north and south bound lanes. Specifically, the project involved the removal of exiting 8-inch depth concrete pavement and replacing it with 12-inch depth PCC pavement. Also involved in the reconstruction were five (5) on-off ramps for the SR-141/SR 52 interchange which included acceleration and deceleration lanes. Essentially, the reconstruction was done using the same footprint as the existing roadway and the same base. All drainage inlets along the roadway were rehabilitated and certain areas were reconstructed using undercuts to handle stormwater. Mechanical rubblization of the existing pavement was used to create subgrade with placement of new subbase where required. During construction, traffic flow was maintained by reducing flow to one lane of traffic in each direction on one side of the dual highway, thus the northbound lanes of SR 141 took the traffic while the southbound lanes were under construction and vice-versa. N&W, as a sub-consultant, provided four (4) construction inspectors on this project including the lead inspector for the day shift.
Christina River Bridge, Wilmington, Delaware
The Christina River Bridge at the Wilmington, Delaware Riverfront is a new 470’ multi-modal bridge over the Christina River that includes two twelve ft. (2-12’) travel lanes and shoulders, as well as a fourteen ft. (14’) wide bicycle/pedestrian path. The path will connect to the Riverfront walkway as well as other bicycle/pedestrian facilities in the area. The project extends from the area near Frawley Stadium across the Christina River to its east bank in the vicinity of Market Street/Walnut Street split of Business US 13 which leads to the downtown business district. The bridge provides an additional access to the Riverfront attractions and improves access to US 13, I-95 and I-495 for commuters and travelers to the city. The project also alleviates traffic congestion and improves circulation near Riverfront attractions. After the completion of construction, this project will also add economic development opportunities for Delaware. The bridge is a $28.4 million project and will be completed by Summer 2019. N&W, as a sub-consultant, provided one of two inspectors who provided inspection services from the very beginning of the project. The N&W inspector served as the solo inspector for the close-out of the project.
Howell School Road, New Castle County, Delaware
Navarro & Wright Consulting Engineers, Inc. (N&W), as a subconsultant, is providing construction inspection services for the realignment of Howell School Road and the reworking of the intersection of Howell School Road (N54) and Denny Road (N396) with SR 896 to create a single, signalized intersection as a precursor to the completion of the SR301 project in Middletown. There is a section of new roadway that requires extensive new stormwater pipeline installation as well as sedimentation & erosion control.
Drainage was a major issue and was achieved through repair and rehabilitation of existing drainage inlets as well as installation of u-drains and storm-sewer pipes. Reconstruction of an existing storm water management pond will occur to prevent roadway flooding during heavy rains. Facilities installed includes relocation of DelDOT ITS fiber optics lines that included two cross-bores and the installation of new junction wells. New Type 1 and Type 2 curb both with and without integrated gutters. There are also curb ramps, triangular channelizing islands we constructed. Navarro & Wright inspectors were also responsible for MOT and traffic phasing for the project. This is a $17.7 million construction project with an approximately 18 months scheduled for construction and is expected to be finished by the beginning of 2020.
West Dover Connector, City of Dover, Delaware
West Dover Connector, also known as the POW-MIA Parkway, is a newly construction 4-lane roadway that provides a bypass for the residents on the western side of the city of Dover, Delaware. The roadway was designed by DelDOT to relieve heavy traffic on several local roads and residential streets is the rapidly growing area of the city. The need is particularly great during morning and evening rush hours. As a sub-consultant, N&W provided project construction inspection on this project until its completion. The Parkway project consists of a 3.2 mile long, hot-mix asphalt road on new alignment and the rehabilitation of a 3/4-mile long section of West North Street with 12-inch Portland cement concrete pavement. The objective of the new project was to connect the businesses and new residential developments on the western edges of the City of Dover with US 13, a main north-south highway and shopping areas along that roadway. There will be bicycle and pedestrian lanes incorporated into the entire Connector project. Navarro and Wright performed construction inspection as a DBE sub-consultant on this project.
Two significant bridges were part of the Connector project. Bridge 2-156 carries the Connector over the Puncheon Run creek & wetlands and Norfolk Southern railroad tracks. This is a 742 ft long 6-span, prestressed concrete H-beam bridge. It is over 90ft wide and carries 4 lanes of traffic as well as a bicycle lane. Bridge 2-157 carries the Connector over New Burton Road and Norfolk Southern Railroad tracks. It is a 155 ft long, 2-span, prestressed concrete H-beam bridge. It is over 70 ft wide and also carries 4 lanes of traffic and a bicycle lane. This is a $67.9 million project with $49 million coming from the federal government. The new roadway opened in late September, 2017 and took roughly 31 months to complete.
US 301 Toll Road, Middletown, Delaware
The US 301 Toll Road is a $470 million project that runs through Middletown, Delaware and connects US 301 from the Maryland/Delaware state line to the SR 1 Toll Road and eventually to I-95 in the North and the Sussex County, Delaware to the South. Middletown is one of the fastest growing areas in Delaware and the new 301 Limited Access Toll Road provides relief from congestion, manages truck traffic and improves safety for local residents as old US 301, the local road, had a poor accident record including over 1,500 accidents between 2000 and 2013. This DelDOT project was initially divided into 7 separate contracts to expedite construction. N&W served as a sub-consultant on Section (or contract) 3 of the project, which was from Maryland State Line on the western end of the project to Levels Road (Delaware SR 15). This is a segment of roadway that is approximately 2.5 miles long and contains the automated toll facility for the roadway. The entire mainline of the limited-access 301 is approximately 14 miles long. This was all new construction on a new alignment. The roadway itself is a PCC four-lane divided highway. N&W, as a sub-consultant, had one well-experienced construction inspector assigned to the project and he functioned as the lead for the concrete paving work. Chief duties performed included: checking installation requirements, spacing and alignment of dowel baskets prior to concrete placement; checking alignment, depth and spacing of manually installed dowels at load transfer joints; checking grade, and horizontal and vertical alignment of concrete pavement forms; inspected fixed form concrete paving as well as slip form paving and insured all center bars and tie bars were installed as required; and ensuring that all DelDOT requirements and specifications were followed. Section 3 was completed and opened for travel in March, 2019.