Owner/Client
Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure
Commission
Location
Lorain County, OH
CEC Services
- Roadway Design
- Highway R/W Surveys
- Horizontal & Vertical Control Surveys
- LiDAR Surveys – Short and Long Range
- Mobile LiDAR Surveys/Bridge Surveys
- Photogrammetric and 3D LiDAR
- Topography
- Roadway Surveys
- Topographic Surveys
- Utility Surveys
- Structural Bridge Engineering
- Bridge Inspection
Owner Objective
The Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission (OTIC) is the owner and operator of the Ohio Turnpike, a major interstate route connecting the Pennsylvania Turnpike (I 76) to the east and the Indiana Toll Road (I-80) to the west. OTIC charges modest tolls to assist motorists using this vital corridor. Under the current bridge rehabilitation program, OTIC needs engineering services to determine the extent of required rehabilitation of three bridges and engineering to prepare plans to provide the needed rehabilitation. The three bridges being designed include two bridges carrying local traffic over the turnpike and one bridge carrying the Ohio Turnpike over a local road. All the bridges are in Lorain County, just west of Cleveland, Ohio.
CEC Approach
CEC performed in-depth field inspections of the bridges to assess the deficiencies and determine the extent of the rehabilitation required. To ensure the sufficient structural capability of the rehabilitated structures, the three bridges were loadrated, determining their carrying capacity. Additionally, a thorough, “hand-on” inspection was conducted on the primary structural members, including nondestructive testing of the steel and concrete members. Inspection crews were looking for section loss, deterioration, fatigue cracks, concrete cracking and spalling and other deterioration.
The Ohio Turnpike’s primary revenue generation is through tolling. They are very sensitive to any disruptions to traffic which would create a reason for users to choose an alternate route of travel. To minimize impacts to the turnpike users, CEC’s survey crews used mobile and stationary LiDAR surveys to complete the extensive survey required for the project with minimal disruptions to traffic flow. Final plans will address deficiencies observed during the inspection and will include the design of a new concrete bridge deck for each structure. Upon completion of this project, OTIC will have an additional three bridges of its approximate 550 bridge inventory restored to near-new condition.
