Solution: Prestressed concrete bridge girders accelerate construction process, offer enhanced load-bearing capacity, and have an extended service life.
Prestressed Bridge Girders Chosen to Replace 80-Year-Old Lone Rock Bridges
The WIS 130 Lone Rock bridge has served travelers for more than 80 years and has been used to transport consumer goods, agricultural products, and more over the Wisconsin River. The steel truss bridges were replaced with two bridges constructed with prestressed concrete girders to restore an important travel route and improve safety for drivers. The new bridge systems will lead WIS 130 and 133 over both channels of the Wisconsin River.
Transportation departments across the nation rely on prestressed concrete bridge girders to meet the needs of local communities. They have an enhanced load-bearing capacity over long spans and an extended service life of nearly 75 years, which is the longest service life of any bridge material or superstructure. The new bridges were designed using girders with a higher concrete strength than is typically used in Wisconsin, which made it possible to use longer beams and limit the number of piers in the river, reducing the impact on the wetlands.
County Prestress & Precast supplied 64 bridge girders for this project. Delivery required careful pre-planning because the construction site presented access challenges. To deliver the girders to the crane for erection, the hauling equipment needed to leave the roadway and navigate a path to a temporary causeway within the river channel. Project leaders appreciated the regular communication throughout the duration of the project and the skilled deliveries executed by County Prestress & Precast truck drivers.
Project Highlights: Prefabricated bridge systems accelerated the construction process because production of the girders took place in a climate-controlled facility while the site was being prepared. The strength and durability of the prestressed girders will ensure the safety of travelers for many years to come.
