Before repairs, the only available route for most travelers was a detour of approximately 200 mi., creating an urgent need to reopen the route.
(CDOT photo)
Construction crews from Ralph L. Wadsworth began a project to permanently repair Colorado Highway 133 at milepoint 16, which was significantly damaged after a growing sinkhole collapsed the road in May.
Heavy snowfall buildup on the Western Slope led to a higher-than-average spring runoff season, resulting in many rivers and creeks running higher and faster than usual. Such was the case with Bear Creek, whose rushing waters collapsed a culvert beneath SH 133, 7 mi. northeast of Paonia, causing the highway above to wash out, leaving a deep, impassable crevasse more than 20 ft. across.
The general contractor began work on a temporary bridge on May 23. The project was expedited and opened within one month.
"Right after the contractor is awarded the project, they usually have four months to do the final planning and designing of the project, and then they get the project," CDOT Spokesperson Elise Thatcher said of the temporary replacement. "In this case, we had to compress that down to two weeks. So they really were working in an expedited fashion."
In August, crews began the work to make permanent repairs. In order to get the permanent bridge in place, the bridge needed to be designed, then shipped in eight truckloads from North Carolina. Crews then needed to prepare the site for the bridge, including excavating the foundation and removing asphalt from the site. Crews also poured concrete and reinforced it.
The permanent repairs commenced with installing water pumps to divert the water flowing through Bear Creek, which was needed to begin excavation. By mid-week, a pipe arrived to replace the damaged culvert. Once it is replaced, the temporary bridge will be removed and prep work will begin for final paving and striping, CDOT said.
The area under the bridge used to be a 60-in. culvert and will now be replaced with a 72-in. culvert when the project is complete.
The permanent bridge is expected to be completed by November 2023.
Parts of the bridge were assembled and put on rollers, then pushed toward the other side of the bridge, then two more pieces would be installed and rolled, being pushed by a forklift. That process took three weeks, according to CDOT.
"The damage originally began with a small sinkhole and lane closure during the weekend of Saturday, April 29," a Colorado Department of Transportation press release stated. "Major flooding from nearby Bear Creek early the week of May 1 filled a culvert with debris and flooded the roadway, pushing the culvert through the other side of the road and eroded roadway embankment, causing the road to collapse."
The structure is designed by Acrow, an international bridge engineering and supply company. It provided the contractor a heavy-duty Mabey Universal bridge with a length of 103.35 ft. and a curb-to-curb width of 30 ft. to enable two-way traffic. The bridge is designed to AASHTO HL-93 and has an anti-skid epoxy coated deck. The bridge was rented to the contractor and will be in place until repairs are completed.
"Acrow's Mabey Universal modular steel bridge was an ideal solution for this emergency project," said Eugene Sobecki, Acrow's director of national sales and military business development. "With unprecedented heavy-load capacity, the Mabey Universal is quickly assembled and installed to reconnect critical routes."
Replacement Needed
When SH 133 was closed in May, it caused an immediate impact to residents and businesses. Although some vehicles, including first responders, Somerset residents and those making necessary deliveries, were allowed to pass around the damage, the only available route for most travelers was a detour of some 200 mi., creating an urgent need to reopen the route.
"In the wake of emergencies, modular steel solutions can help expedite the reconnection of critical routes," said Russ Parisi, Acrow's vice president of North America.
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