Berkeley Shoulder and Barrier Rail, Caltrans Contract #04-4G2304

This Caltrans Project was designed to replace temporary k-rail along the right shoulder of EB-80 from Ashby Ave. to University Ave. with 1 mile of permanent, Type 60, barrier rail. All of the work for the project was along the shoulder of a highly congested corridor with constant exposure to the travelling public. The key to this project was access for construction and we were able to partner with the City of Berkeley to use their property adjacent to the freeway for most of the construction activities.

This provided safer access for all team members and eliminated much of the potential exposure. Other aspects of the project included the removal and replacement of a 300’ long barrier slab and the installation of a new, 600’ long drainage system with all new precast drainage inlets along the face of the barrier rail. We worked together with Caltrans to overcome constant hurdles related to the conditions of the existing facilities to keep the project moving in a positive direction. While most of our competitors planed on extruding the barrier rail, we performed the work by forming, pouring and striping the rail with wood forms. This allowed us to work in the day time for the most part and it provided Caltrans with a superior finish on the concrete.

Stockton Retaining Walls, Caltrans #10-1C4214 (Subcontractor to Bay Cities Paving & Grading, Inc.)

The Stockton Retaining Walls project required ramp widenings, installing ramp metering, fiber optic cable and Retaining Walls for vehicle pull outs. We completed the construction of 500’ of retaining walls with barrier rail on Highway 99 for Caltrans. The retaining walls were a success and finished ahead of schedule.

Santa Clara Retaining Wall, Caltrans Contract #04-2G9904

This project required roadway improvements located in Santa Clara County on Route 130, including new Soldier Pile Retaining Wall, new drainage systems, and over 2500 ft of asphalt concrete pavement overlay. Project challenges include mountainous terrain with limited access, and strict biological requirements, limiting the construction window to less than five months. The concrete and soldier pile were stained in order to improve the aesthetics of the new improvements.

Bakersfield Bridge Seismic Retrofit, Caltrans Contract #06-0K8104

The seismic retrofit project included two outdated bridges in desperate need of some attention. One of the major challenges of a retrofit is that all of the work is designed based on the assumption that the original product was built perfectly to the original design. By understanding that this is not a reasonable assumption, we were able to stay ahead of the process and partner with Caltrans to overcome the multiple discrepancies found throughout the existing structures. The project included 18 XX-strong steel pipe extenders, ranging from 8-10 feet long, that had to be installed inside the hinges on both bridges. The process required outside-the-box thinking to devise a plan to hoist the pipes inside of the bridges and slide them through a cored hole in the existing hinges. Other challenging aspects of the project included 25’ tall infill walls between columns, steel column casings, bridge footing retrofit, diaphragm bolster construction bridge access openings, barrier rail, guard rail, and paving.