90 80
OHIO STATE EDITION
6
A Supplement to:
422
6 80 24
6
4
71
76
199 30 30 75
68
30 77
71 23 22 68
4
70 70
70
22 71
75
77
27
August 16 2014
22 74
50
50 25
Vol. XVIII • No. 17
35
52
“The Nation’s Best Read Construction Newspaper… Founded in 1957.” Your Ohio Connection: Ed Bryden, Strongsville, OH • 1-800-810-7640 The demolition of the bridge, which spans the Cuyahoga River, is critical for the rebuilding of a new bridge on the same site — The George V. Voinovich Bridge.
Cleveland’s Innerbelt Bridge Demo Makes Solid Progress By Irwin Rapoport CEG CORRESPONDENT
The demolition of the Cleveland’s Innerbelt Bridge continued on July 12 with a controlled explosive demolition of its steel skeleton. The demolition of the bridge, which spans the Cuyahoga River, is critical for the rebuilding of a new bridge on the same site — The George V. Voinovich Bridge. The Innerbelt Bridge, built in 1959, is being demolished on behalf of the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) and Trumbull-Great Lakes-Ruhlin (the joint-venture building the new bridge) by a team that includes the Joseph B. Fay Company and Controlled Demolition Inc. Using a combination of traditional demolition techniques and controlled (explosive) demolition, five of the nine steel spans of the bridge were dropped. The lights, bridge railings, concrete road and barriers had already been removed through traditional methods, as was the disassembling of several spans that spanned the river and rail lines. The public was invited to watch the demolition. For their safety a 1,000-ft. (305 m) perimeter was established for the blast zone and many local roadways including I-90, the LorainCarnegie Bridge, Abbey Avenue and others, were closed during the event. The new bridge, consisting of one span in each direction, is a major ODOT project to help
people access and exit Cleveland’s downtown in a more efficient manner. The first span is carrying traffic in both directions until the new span open in late 2016. The Joseph B. Fay Company began work on the demolition in mid-January and expected to complete the job in mid-September, said Chuck Grabner, project engineer. “The removal of the existing bridge is one of the most significant items, as the new structure shares a portion of its foot print with its predecessor,” he said. “In addition, winter weather conditions at the start of the project were tough to battle through. A third challenge is that the improvements below the Innerbelt Bridge include the Cuyahoga River, CSX RR, Norfolk Southern RR, Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, multiple streets and businesses. “In order to conquer this challenge, enormous coordination effort starting with the general contractor and including all stakeholders has been needed,” he added. “Having all the vested interests in this project involved from the start is proving to be the keystone of producing a successful outcome for everyone involved.” When the demolition is complete, 34 million lbs. of steel will be recycled, and 27,000 cu. yd. (20,643 cu m) of superstructure and substructure concrete will be recycled and used by the general contractor for various items on the new bridge. see BRIDGE page 6
One challenge of the project is that the improvements below the Innerbelt Bridge include the Cuyahoga River, CSX RR, Norfolk Southern RR, Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, multiple streets and businesses.
A 1,000-ft. (305 m) perimeter was established for the blast zone and many local roadways including I-90, the Lorain-Carnegie Bridge, Abbey Avenue and others, were closed during the event.