#New haven east rock park manual

Throughout the duration of the project, the city and the consulting team maintained a robust public outreach program, including a project-specific website and three public information meetings. The design team obtained the required permits from city and state regulatory agencies. The firm also performed hydrologic, hydraulic, and scour analyses. The testing enabled Dewberry to verify the capacity of the original foundation and its ability to carry increased loads. The excavations extended down to the bottom of footings to observe the tops of the timber piles, which were still in excellent condition.

Geotechnical investigations included excavating test pits in front of the abutments, verifying existing foundation details, and performing non-destructive testing on the original timber piles to assess their condition and verify their adequacy for design scour events. The rehabilitation replicated the ornamental pedestrian rail system and added decorative lighting. This required the use of a specialized tracked vehicle to inspect the bridge from the riverbed, as the bridge’s weight restrictions prohibited the use of an under-bridge inspection vehicle located on the bridge deck. Dewberry also inspected the bridge to document section losses and current conditions. The process began with a review of the original, circa-1900 engineering plans and an effort to supplement information missing from those plans. In conjunction with these design standards, the design was required to emphasize aesthetics and incorporate historical elements into the process. This led to the final design capacity of 36 tons, as compared to the previous weight limit restrictions of 17 tons and 24 tons for trucks and tractor-trailers, respectively.

#New haven east rock park manual

The consulting team also included William Kenny Associates, LLC, for Wetlands delineation, Martinez Couch & Associates, LLC, for the site survey, and Archeological & Historical Services for archeological consulting.Ĭity officials challenged Dewberry’s engineers to develop a design that complied with Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), ConnDOT, and AASHTO guidelines and specifications, and in particular the AASHTO LFRD Bridge Design Manual with the HL-93 design vehicle. The city selected the firm of Dewberry as the prime consultant to perform an in-depth inspection and design of the bridge rehabilitation. Based on the state’s inspection, the City of New Haven determined that the bridge required a major refurbishment.

In 2007, the Connecticut Department of Transportation (ConnDOT) performed a routine biennial inspection of the East Rock Road Bridge that led to ratings of “serious” for the bridge deck condition and “poor” for the superstructure. The east and west abutments are supported on spread footings and timber pile foundations, respectively. These elements were modified during the 1984 rehabilitation by adding a concrete cap to support the new sidewalk and railing on the wingwalls. The original abutments and wingwalls are gravity-type walls with brown, cut-stone masonry facing. The bridge recently reopened after a $2.1 million rehabilitation. Built in 1900, East Rock Road Bridge is a historic structure within New Haven, Connecticut’s scenic East Rock Park.