demolition of the grace memorial bridge and the silas...

Jay Cashman, Inc. / Testa Corp. A Joint Venture

222 Huger Street, Charleston, SC 29403 TEL: 843-577-3475 FAX: 843-577-3476 www.jaycashman.com www.testacorp.com

DEMOLITION OF THE GRACE MEMORIAL BRIDGE AND THE SILAS PEARMAN BRIDGE

OVER COOPER RIVER

A DESIGN-BUILD PROJECT

August 8, 2005

CSL5-STP20 Rev 1

Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge Deck Pre-Condition Survey

Prepared For:

SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

DEMOLITION OF COOPER RIVER BRIDGES SCDOT – File 10.158Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge Deck Pre-Condition Survey August 8, 2005

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2 O:\2005\CHS-05-229 Existing CRB Demolition\New CRB Deck Pre-Condition Survey\CHS-05-229 New CRB Deck Pre-Condition Survey 8-8-05.doc

DEMOLITION OF THE GRACE MEMORIAL BRIDGE AND THE SILAS PEARMAN BRIDGE

OVER COOPER RIVER

A DESIGN-BUILD PROJECT

Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge Deck Pre-Condition Survey

August 8, 2005

Prepared By:


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page 1. INTRODUCTION 4 2. PROJECT INFORMATION 4

2.1 Overview 4 2.2 Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge Deck 4 3. PRE-CONDITION SURVEY 4

3.1 Overview 4 3.2 Visual Examination 5 3.3 Video Documentation 5 3.4 Photographic Documentation 5 3.5 Pre-Condition Survey Summary 6 4. REPORT LIMITATIONS 7 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Video Disc 1 (DVD-1) 8 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Video Disc 2 (DVD-2) 9 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Video Disc 3 (DVD-3) 10 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Photograph CD-ROM 1 (CD-ROM 1) 11 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Photograph CD-ROM 2 (CD-ROM 2) 12 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Photograph CD-ROM 3 (CD-ROM 3) 13 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Photograph CD-ROM 4 (CD-ROM 4) 14 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Photograph CD-ROM 5 (CD-ROM 5) 15 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Photograph CD-ROM 6 (CD-ROM 6) 16 Pre-Condition Survey Digital Photograph CD-ROM 7 (CD-ROM 7) 17 Figure A 18 Figure B 19 Figure C 20 Figure D 21 Figure E 22 Figure F 23 Figure G 24 Figure H 25 Figure I 26 Figure J 27 Figure K 28 Figure L 29


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1. INTRODUCTION The following submittal presents the pre-condition survey of a selected portion of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge deck along US Route 17 in Charleston County, SC. This pre-condition survey was conducted to document the existing conditions of the new concrete bridge deck and concrete barrier walls within 200± ft of the main span of the existing Silas N. Pearman Bridge prior to its demolition. 2. PROJECT INFORMATION 2.1 Overview The project consists of demolition of the existing Grace Memorial and Silas N. Pearman bridges over the Cooper River along US 17. The demolition of the existing bridges will extend from the current Mt. Pleasant ramps to the intersection with Interstate I-26 near Meeting Street in Charleston, SC. Refer to the project documents for further details regarding the demolition of the existing bridges and roadway structures. 2.2 Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge (i.e. the new Cooper River Bridge), which connects Mt Pleasant to Charleston along US 17, is the largest cable stayed bridge in North America. This bridge replaces the Grace Memorial and Silas N. Pearman bridges scheduled for demolition. The main span has eight (8) vehicular travel lanes and one (1) pedestrian sidewalk. The cable stayed span hangs from two diamond towers at each end of the 1546 foot span. The bridge was built by the design/build team of Palmetto Bridge Constructors, a joint venture of Tidewater Skanska, Inc. and Flatiron Constructors Inc. Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade and Douglas provided the design services. Refer to the project construction documents for additional details of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge construction. 3. PRE-CONDITION SURVEY 3.1. Overview The pre-condition survey of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge main span concrete deck and concrete barrier walls consisted of the following:

• A visual examination of the deck concrete and barrier walls within the examination zone in general accordance with ACI 201.1R-92 Guide for Making a Condition Survey of Concrete in Service.

• Digital videotaping the bridge deck concrete within the examination zone.


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• Detailed digital photographing of bridge deck areas identified during the visual examination and digital videotaping which have significant existing damage (e.g. cracking, spalling, etc).

In addition, an attempt was made by WPC to compile any relevant Requests For Information (RFI’s) and Non-Conformance Reports (NCR’s) from Palmetto Bridge Constructors (PBC) and the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) relating to the Arthur Ravenel Jr. concrete bridge deck. Requests were made through the Jay Cashman Inc./Testa Corp. Joint Venture (hereafter referred to as the JV) and through PBC. However, no information was provided to WPC as of the time of this submittal. The pre-condition survey examination area extended to a distance of 225± ft from the western edge of the Silas Pearman Bridge Main Span to 250± ft from the eastern edge of the Silas Pearman Bridge Main Span. Figure A in the submittal Appendix shows the extent of the pre-condition survey of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge Deck relative to the existing Grace Memorial and Silas N. Pearman bridges. Fieldwork for the pre-condition survey was conducted between July 8, 2005 and July 13, 2005. 3.2 Visual Examination Our visual examination of the consisted of WPC personnel examining the total exposed area of the bridge deck and barrier walls. Significant existing damage (e.g. cracking, spalling, etc) was noted during this examination for photographic documentation. Our examination was conducted in accordance with ACI 201.1R-92 Guide for Making a Condition Survey of Concrete in Service. 3.3 Video Documentation Video documentation of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge main bridge deck consisted of WPC personnel slowly walking the main span examination area with a video camera. The video camera was directed towards the concrete bridge deck and barrier walls. The path of the video surveys is presented in Figure B in the submittal Appendix. Location along the bridge deck was annotated in the pre-condition survey video via audio callouts which referenced the main span cables. The numbering of the main span cables is presented in Figure B in the submittal Appendix. The pre-condition survey videos were transferred to Digital Video Discs (DVD’s), which are attached to the submittal Appendix. 3.4 Photographic Documentation Photographic documentation of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge main bridge deck consisted of WPC personnel photographing significant existing damage (e.g. cracking, spalling, etc) of the


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main bridge deck and barrier walls identified during our visual examination. The locations of the various pre-condition survey photographs are presented in Figures C through L in the submittal Appendix. As with the pre-condition survey video, the photographs are referenced relative to the main bridge span cables. The numbering for these cables assigned by WPC is presented in Figure B in the submittal Appendix. The individual pre-condition survey photographs are presented in digital JPG format on seven (7) CD-ROM’s attached to the submittal Appendix. 3.5 Pre-Condition Survey Summary In general, our pre-condition survey observed numerous existing cracks within the main bridge concrete deck and concrete barrier walls. No significant spalling, honeycombing, or other types of concrete deterioration was observed during our examination. The majority of the main bridge concrete deck cracks can be categorized as hairline (i.e. cracks in exposed concrete surface having widths so small as to be barely perceptible) and checking (i.e. shallow surface cracks at closely spaced but irregular intervals). These categorizations are in accordance with ACI 201.1R-92. In general, the observed deck checking cracks are parallel to the main axis of the bridge, although some cracks were observed to be transverse to the main bridge axis. Typical concrete deck checking cracks oriented along the main bridge alignment are shown in Figure 1.

(a) Photograph 2055 (b) Drawing showing cracks

Figure 1. Typical Concrete Checking observed on the Main Bridge Deck during the Pre-Condition Survey (ruler along bridge span main axis).


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The majority of concrete barrier wall cracks can be categorized as transverse cracking (i.e. cracks that develop at right angles to the long direction of the member) by ACI 201.1R-92. Typical transverse cracking on the concrete barrier walls is shown in Figure 2. We note that no expansion joints were observed within the concrete barrier walls.

(a) Photograph 0323 (b) Drawing showing cracks

Figure 2. Typical Concrete Transverse Cracking observed on the Barrier Walls during the Pre-Condition Survey.

In general, crack widths on the concrete deck ranged from barely perceptible (i.e. <1/64 inch) to up to 3/16 inch. Along the concrete barrier walls, crack widths also ranged from barely perceptible (i.e. <1/64 inch) to up to 3/16 inch. With the exception of the noted cracking, the examined concrete bridge deck and barrier walls appear to be in fair condition. 4. REPORT LIMITATIONS This report has been prepared in accordance with generally accepted engineering practices for the specific applications to this project. The conclusions and recommendations contained in this report are based on the applicable standards of our profession at the time of preparation.


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Pre-Condition Survey Digital Video Disc 1 (DVD-1)


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Pre-Condition Survey Digital Photograph CD-ROM 1 (CD-ROM 1)


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demolition of the grace memorial bridge and the silas...

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