The Federal Highway Administration worked with officials in Defiance County, Ohio, on a form of accelerated bridge construction that uses geosynthetic-reinforced soil. Rather than drilling a deep foundation, the reinforced soil method builds up the substructure in a faster, simpler way, described as akin to building a layer cake. For this type of bridge, there is a smooth transition from the roadway to the superstructure, resulting in a jointless bridge system. With this approach, the County’s first project, the Bowman Road Bridge, was built in just six weeks saving about 25 percent compared to their conventional bridge construction. They not only succeeded in building a bridge for less money and time, but the County went on to rebuild 25 additional bridges in this same manner.
Courtesy of U.S. Department of Transportation
