Better Roads Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/109757
Photos by Brian Gurney Photography, Portland—For Omega Morgan ing complicated moves includes the removal of Portland's require destruction of the old (1924) bridge that would Sauvie Island Bridge and installation of the new bridge, have required 30,500 vehicles a day to re-route miles managing the Third Avenue Bridge project in New York away to other bridges. And, says the company, there City, moving two 900-ton spans on the Hood Canal Bridge were other benefits to the plan including reducing enviand the transport and launch of the Kalama River Bridge. ronmental impact and improving safety for bridge users and workers. Multnomah County encompasses the most populous The move took 12 hours area in Oregon, including the city of Portland and the The crew raised the truss span vertically by several inches heavily travelled Sellwood Bridge. The project was one of and then pushed it north by hydraulic jack-and-slide the largest the county has undertaken in decades, accordbeams. It was then slowly moved twice as far on the west ing to officials managing the project. The county say that Engineers on ropes end (66 feet) than at the east end (33 feet) to accomdoing specialized structural inspections "considering the rarity of four-span bridges, the Sellwood modate for the new, permanent bridge being wider at move could be the first time such an operation has been the west end, flaring from two to four lanes to add trafperformed for a structure of this type. This is," says the fic capacity. The truss span was then moved on a radius, county, "one of the longest, oldest structures to be moved along a curving path, adding to the complexity of the in this way." execution. Omega Morgan assigned a team led by Vice President of The heavy work had its lighter side. A common dishEngineering Ralph Di Caprio, whose experience in executwashing soap was used to lubricate pads on the slides. Better Roads February 2013 15