Concrete Segmental Bridge Solution Saves Money - 51H Monongahela River Bridge, Brownsville, Penn.

SEGMENTS, WINTER 2011, VOL. 56

The new Monongahela River Bridge (Fig. 1) near Brownsville, Pennsylvania is now under construction and scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2011. The bridge features long, arching spans and tall, slender piers to create a concrete segmental bridge to carry 4 lanes of traffic.

The 3,200' long bridge consists of seven spans, including a main span of 518', built in balanced cantilever construction (Fig. 2) to cross the river, two active rail lines, and local roads. C-shaped piers rise over 200 ft above the mountainous terrain and support the dual-cell box girder superstructure. FIGG worked with Walsh Construction to provide a Contractor Alternate design that resulted in a savings of $8.6 million for the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.