Gilmerton Bridge Replacement Project, United States of America

Key Data

Located to the west of Bainbridge Boulevard, the Henry G. Gilmerton Bridge is built across the southern branch of the Elizabeth River. The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) proposed to replace the bridge and its approaches on the Military Highway, Route 13, in the City of Chesapeake. The proposal was submitted to the Commander Fifth Coast Guard District in 2008.

The original bridge, built in 1938, is a four-lane double leaf bascule bridge. The bridge is travelled by over 35,000 motorists daily. It is owned operated by the City of Chesapeake.

To be built on the same alignment, the new Gilmerton Bridge will be a four-lane vertical lift bridge with new approaches. It will form an alternative route to the High Rise Bridge and provide direct access to south-eastern Portsmouth from south-western Chesapeake. The motorists will be able to choose a combination of I-464, the High Rise Bridge, Route 17 and Gilmerton routes to travel between Suffolk and Portsmouth. The replacement is scheduled to be completed in fall 2013.

Design

"The Gilmerton bridge widening project will ease the traffic congestion on Hampton Roads."

The completed bridge will be a three lane, two way lift bridge. It will be 1,908ft-long and 85ft-wide and will have a 250ft steel truss vertical lift span.

The existing bridge has a vertical clearance of 7ft above mean high water at low steel and 9ft above mean low water at low steel. The horizontal clearance of the existing bridge is 125ft between the pile bents. The speed limits on the bridge average 45mph to 55mph.

The new lift span bridge will be elevated to allow larger maritime vessels through the waterway, which are not passable in the closed position, and descend to close for motorists traffic. The new bridge will have a vertical clearance of 36.75ft above mean high water and 39.72ft above mean low water. In fully open position, it will have a vertical clearance of 136.9ft above mean high water and 139.72ft above mean low water.

The bridge widening will ease the traffic congestion on Hampton Roads. It will also accommodate the future widening of Military Highway from four to six lanes. Taller vertical clearance will support maritime access of modern ships to the region and decrease the amount of bridge lifts per year, as most leisure crafts will pass under the bridge in the closed position.

Construction

Construction of the bridge is being carried out in three phases. The first phase involves building of the eastbound side of the bridge. In the second phase, the lift span will be moved to the site via the barge. The traffic operations will be closed for 14 days during the lift span installation. The third phase will include the completion of the west side of the bridge, demolition of the existing bridge and completion of the new bridge approach.

"The original bridge, which was built in 1938, is a four-lane double leaf Bascule bridge."

As part of the bridge replacement, the existing approach piers will be trimmed to approximately 2ft below the mud line. The existing bascule piers will be removed completely. A new fender system will be constructed.

Construction work on the replacement project began on 1 November 2009. In late 2010, some lanes were closed and driving speed limits were reduced during construction activities. By 30 May 2013, a substantial part of the construction will be completed.

The entire construction is expected to be complete by 7 October 2013.

For almost the entire duration of construction, this stretch on the Military Highway (US-13), between Bainbridge Boulevard and Shell Road, will be reduced to two lanes from four. The bridge will also remain open and motorist traffic will be coordinated to have least impact during the construction period.

Financing

The replacement of the bridge is estimated to cost a maximum of $158m. In September 2008, the VDOT received $32m in funding from federal transportation spending authority. Out of this, VDOT has allocated $13m of the $32m to the replacement of the Gilmerton Bridge.

Contractors

Bids for the replacement of the bridge were made in late August 2009. PCL Civil Constructors won the contract in September 2009 for a value of $133.8m. WSP Mountain is the structural steel engineer for the Gilmerton Bridge Replacement Project.

Environmental concerns

The project will affect 1.7 acres of emergent wetlands, 0.04 acres of scrub-shrub wetlands and 0.03 acres of forested wetlands.

The Henry G. Gilmerton Bridge is built across the southern branch of the Elizabeth River.

The original Gilmerton bridge was built in 1938.

The replacement of the bridge is estimated to cost $158m.