I-65 North Reopening from Lebanon to Lafayette
Effective immediately, law
enforcement and contractor vehicles are reopening the northbound lanes of I-65
between Lebanon and Lafayette. Walsh Construction Company completed repairs and
load tested the Wildcat Creek bridge near Lafayette as Indiana Department of
Transportation inspectors observed.
“I am grateful for the Indiana
Department of Transportation’s around-the-clock efforts to reopen the
interstate ahead of schedule,” said Governor Mike Pence. “We appreciate the
patience of citizens in communities that have been affected. Construction in
this area and others is ongoing and we urge motorists to be mindful as they
travel our highways.”
Construction continues INDOT contractors and maintenance
crews made the best of the unplanned I-65 northbound closure by performing
additional work between Lebanon and Lafayette. Construction projects and lane
closures that had been suspended on the alternate routes will resume within the
next few days.
I-65 remains an active work zone as
contractors widen and rehabilitate the interstate near Lafayette. Drivers
should reduce their speed, allow extra following distance and look twice before
changing lanes in work zones.
Planned I-65 lane closures for
construction will continue at night, when traffic is lighter, between State
Road 38 (Exit 168) and State Road 25 (Exit 175). Drivers may use U.S. 52, State
Road 28 and U.S. 231 as an alternate route to avoid the nighttime lane
closures.
Detour route INDOT urges U.S. 52, State Road 28
and U.S. 231 drivers to stay alert as traffic adjusts to normal patterns. In
addition, drivers should watch for slow-moving farm equipment as fall harvest
season begins in the area.
INDOT technicians continue to
monitor pavement condition and traffic flow, and will restore normal signal
timing patterns as appropriate. The temporary traffic signals at U.S. 231 and State Road 28 in Romney and U.S. 52 and State Road 47 near Thorntown will remain in place until traffic resumes normal patterns and INDOT can perform a new engineering study.
What happened
INDOT
awarded an $82.8 million design-build contract in January to Walsh Construction
Company of Crown Point to widen and rehabilitate I-65 from State Road 38 to
State Road 25 in Lafayette. Construction crews drove steel piles into nearby
soils to widen the existing piers and sheet piling to work below the Wildcat
Creek waterline.
The piles pierced the water-tight soils to a
sandy layer with water under pressure. Sand and/or water bubbled up from
beneath the bridge pier, causing it to tilt. Structural engineers monitoring
the riverbank pier noticed the pier settling and tilting, and ordered the
bridge closed on Aug. 7 in the interests of safety.
About the repairs Walsh Construction Company
stabilized the riverbank bridge pier with a process that has been used
effectively with other bridges around the country:
- Steel
casings were drilled through the footer of the existing pier.
- Grout was
injected to fill and densify the sandy artesian well below.
- Twelve
high-strength, small-diameter “micropiles” were installed 67 feet deep
into the soil.
- A
steel-reinforced concrete block was poured at ground level to transfer
loads from the existing pier to the new micropiles.
- The
bridge beams were jacked upward to their normal height and steel supports
were installed.
INDOT, the Federal Highway
Administration and engineering consultants reviewed the repair plans and
inspected the construction to ensure the repairs were safe. Purdue University
and contractor sensors will remain in place for regular monitoring of both the
northbound and southbound bridges.
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