Bridge Strengthening Project Wins CSEA High Hazard Award


M


yers & Sons Construction (Myers) overcame a variety of challenges, from water, confined space and railroad hazards to environmental issues and


a highly accelerated schedule, to successfully complete the Paintersville and Mokelumne River Bridge project. The $26.4 million project, which addressed the seismic


stability deficiencies on four aging bridges located in Caltrans District 3, earned Myers the AGC of California Construction Safety Excellence Award in the category of “Safety on a High Hazard Project.” The project scope included work on two side-by-side


Mokelumne River bridges (northbound and southbound structures) that cross the Mokelumne River on I-5 at the San Joaquin/Sacramento County line; on the Paintersville Bridge, crossing the Sacramento River on SR 160 in Courtland; and on the North Sacramento Undercrossing on SR 160, spanning a Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT) track in an urban area of north Sacramento. Myers performed retrofits to strengthen bridge columns and upgrade the bridges to be more resistant to ground motions, seismic activity and other earthquake-related issues. Each structure is critical to the livelihood of the local agri-


cultural community and traveling public, making public mobil- ity a key element of this project. The contractor’s work on the Paintersville Bridge, a historical movable structural steel truss bridge, required coordination with the U.S. Coast Guard due to


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CALIFORNIA CONSTRUCTOR JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2023


boating laws and regulations on the active Sacramento-to-Cal- ifornia Delta shipping channel that the bridge spans. Myers faced an array of challenges that contributed to the


high hazard nature of the project. They included: • Water hazards: The need to perform work over and in moving water on two of the bridges – Paintersville and Mokelumne – posed unique hazards to the construc- tion team as well as the traveling public. Boating traf- fic required various measures to ensure the waterways remained navigable. Additionally, the use of cranes, drill rigs and other heavy equipment on barges added another layer of complexity and safety concerns. Myers employed a marine engineer to analyze equipment weights and barge capacities to ensure stabilization when drilling for piles, among other solutions.


• Confined space and railroad hazards: Working in a confined space and over operational SacRT tracks at the north Sacramento undercrossing site posed falling risks. To mitigate these hazards, the Myers team coordinated with the City of Sacramento and SacRT to develop a value engi- neering change proposal (VECP) that would lessen traffic impacts on the bridge, create feasible work windows and minimize worker safety concerns.


• Accelerated schedule: To reduce safety risks associated with the project’s accelerated schedule, Myers employed a variety of measures including increased on-site supervi-


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