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Started By
Message
Bridge Construction Engineers: Is This Waste?
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:14 am
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:14 am
I am driving today on I10, I-310, and US 90 and see these large beams being trucked down probably to the New Leeville to Golden Meadow bridge.
Do you think it is a smart idea to transport via the highway instead of ferrying them via barge?
I know it is slower, but at a beam a tractor trailer and multiple 2 team state police escorts for some items.
I guess now we know why the cost to construct was so high and time table to build so long.
I know the construction method was end on end where barging directly to the site was impractical, but you could have made that highway trek shorter.
Do you think it is a smart idea to transport via the highway instead of ferrying them via barge?
I know it is slower, but at a beam a tractor trailer and multiple 2 team state police escorts for some items.
I guess now we know why the cost to construct was so high and time table to build so long.
I know the construction method was end on end where barging directly to the site was impractical, but you could have made that highway trek shorter.
7
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:17 am to Tarps99
They’re one idiot from Texas away from being slower than a barge
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:19 am to Tarps99
I would guess it depends on where they are coming from and if there is access to put them on a barge.
That bridge is supposed to be finished in 2027 right? I feel like every time I go down to GI I’m surprised at how far they’ve gone since my last visit.
ETA It may also have to do with how they’re put into place. IIRC they drive them the length of the bridge and a crane takes them off the truck and puts them right into place.
That bridge is supposed to be finished in 2027 right? I feel like every time I go down to GI I’m surprised at how far they’ve gone since my last visit.
ETA It may also have to do with how they’re put into place. IIRC they drive them the length of the bridge and a crane takes them off the truck and puts them right into place.
This post was edited on 2/7/26 at 9:20 am
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:23 am to Tarps99
Only one thing factors in transporting construction materials/equipment...costs.
If it was cheaper any other way they would do it.
If it was cheaper any other way they would do it.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:25 am to RougeDawg
Theres a company in Tennessee that produces those beams. Probably the cheapest and quickest way to get them here.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:29 am to CaptainsWafer
quote:
I would guess it depends on where they are coming from and if there is access to put them on a barge.
That bridge is supposed to be finished in 2027 right? I feel like every time I go down to GI I’m surprised at how far they’ve gone since my last visit.
I think there is concrete yard in Mandeville that specializes in pile and bridge construction. So I guess if we were bidding this out we also need to factor in Causeway tolls too.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:31 am to Tarps99
Can you just relax? Damn.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:33 am to Tarps99
Just hope the beams are constructed correctly.
US90(future I-49) near Morgan City has load restrictions due to flawed beams. Notice the 'repairs' in the shear areas.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/o3BwBQRoPHNeRNd49
US90(future I-49) near Morgan City has load restrictions due to flawed beams. Notice the 'repairs' in the shear areas.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/o3BwBQRoPHNeRNd49
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:47 am to wheelr
quote:
US90(future I-49) near Morgan City has load restrictions due to flawed beams. Notice the 'repairs' in the shear areas.
It took me awhile, but I finally saw it. But Damn, no wonder there is a weight limit where heavy cargo has to exit in Morgan City and Amelia.
For some of that construction of 90, I think they moved a temporary cement yard in the right a way between 311 and the Chacahoula bridge. The crazy part of the construction was seeing the bridges before the actual surface road. I guess they wanted the road bed to settle before paving.
Good thing they didn’t listen to the 15 year old me that was saying to myself we should have built a continuous bridge between 311 and Morgan City. If it was built it could be a record length roller coaster.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 9:49 am to Kankles
quote:
They’re one idiot from Texas away from being slower than a barge
I always laugh at Louisiana people who legitimately believe Texas drivers are bad and are a root cause of problems on Louisiana roads.
So clueless it’s hilarious. Y’all’s speed limits are like 55 everywhere and every road is extremely narrow it’s a joke.
This post was edited on 2/7/26 at 9:50 am
Posted on 2/7/26 at 10:00 am to Tarps99
quote:
If it was built it could be a record length roller coaster.
This happened to another US90 bridge (I think at Franklin). They had to shave the road surface because your vehicle would bounce over each span.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 10:09 am to wheelr
quote:
US90(future I-49) near Morgan City has load restrictions due to flawed beams. Notice the 'repairs' in the shear areas.
don't know if it's a "flawed beam" situation or a mis-designed beam. looks like all were retrofitted. that screams "calculation error" on the part of the designer. Although, it's possible the prestress manuf made the error in detailing and nobody caught it. now you've got 40 of 'em all wrong. (ask me how I know)
Posted on 2/7/26 at 10:12 am to Tarps99
Several years ago they were transporting one of those concrete beams for the Bryant bridge over the Black Warrior. It was like 90' long. It was making a turn and broke in the middle blocking traffic on both sides of Jack Warner Parkway for about 18 hours until they could get a trackhoe there with a jackhammer head on it to cut it into smaller pieces, a crane to lift onto fladbeds and haul it away.
It was a clusterfrick.
It was a clusterfrick.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 10:17 am to Tarps99
Idk man I always count on you for my DTB news.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 10:19 am to turnpiketiger
quote:
So clueless it’s hilarious. Y’all’s speed limits are like 55 everywhere and every road is extremely narrow it’s a joke.
Have you driven in Texas hill country? I went to Nacogdoches about 15 years ago and came across some sketchy skinny 2 lane roads with a 70 MPH speed limit on Texas Highway 21. Some bridges had a rusty thin pipe as a guard rail.
This post was edited on 2/7/26 at 10:25 am
Posted on 2/7/26 at 11:37 am to Tarps99
Nacogdoches isn't the Texas Hill Country...
West of Austin is the Texas Hill Country
West of Austin is the Texas Hill Country
Posted on 2/7/26 at 1:46 pm to 18handicap
quote:
Nacogdoches isn't the Texas Hill Country... West of Austin is the Texas Hill Country
I meant the east Texas hills where they have all the farms.
It was a nice drive regardless, but I was clinching the steering wheel as I was getting passed going 75.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 4:12 pm to RougeDawg
quote:
Only one thing factors in transporting construction materials/equipment...costs.
I attempted to price a barge and barge crane for a small chiller change out on one of the river casino boats in BR years ago.
To get the maritime crane and barge the company who’d have had to sail the intercostal from Morgan city which was expensive. Then my company would have had to take out a maritime insurance rider for the project. Then there were the coast guard permits.
All the rigging and incidental coats were way more then the cost of the chiller and the project for over their budget so the project never happened.
A few years back we priced a large boiler being shipped in 1 big piece by Trane vs two large pieces transported by highway and then a tandem crane to pice the pieces up and rotate it into setting position. Highway transport was way cheaper.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 5:57 pm to tigeraddict
quote:
All the rigging and incidental coats were way more then the cost of the chiller and the project for over their budget so the project never happened. A few years back we priced a large boiler being shipped in 1 big piece by Trane vs two large pieces transported by highway and then a tandem crane to pice the pieces up and rotate it into setting position. Highway transport was way cheaper.
That is a one off project. We are talking about a 7 mile stretch of bridge with thousands of pilings and beams that have been going to the site since 2023. That is a lot of convoys and troopers on details with pieces going there one at a time.
Posted on 2/7/26 at 6:06 pm to Tarps99
Motormen gotta make those escort $$$
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