I-65 Widening, Section 2, CEI

This 4-mile-long Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) capacity improvement project, extending from approximately SR 840 to 248, entailed widening I-65 from four to eight lanes. Lochner provided construction engineering and inspection (CEI) services for the project, which encompassed 2.3 miles of new interstate construction; 1.7 miles of new interstate signing and pavement marking; the modification of the I-65/SR 248 diamond interchange, including the replacement of the SR 248 bridge; 1.3 miles of widening and utility relocation on SR 248; three new bridges; three piers for a future bridge; and nine retaining walls.

The SR 248 bridge over I-65 was widened from one lane in each direction to carry three lanes with two turn lanes in each direction. This new 10-lane steel girder structure was erected under a phased construction plan that called for the existing bridge to remain in service while the south half of the new bridge was constructed. Within weeks of the new south bridge being ready for traffic, a tanker truck carrying gasoline hit the abutment of the existing bridge and the subsequent fire rendered both bridges—the new and the existing—unsafe for traffic. Lochner, TDOT, and the contractor worked closely and expediently to overcome this large-scale change to the project scope and restore service to the traveling public as quickly as possible.

Within 24 hours of the incident, the Lochner–TDOT–contractor team implemented a traffic control strategy in which one lane of interstate traffic in each direction was run through the interchange via unaffected, structurally sound ramps. The damaged bridges were demolished a few days later, over a weekend, to enable the I-65 mainline to return to full-capacity operations. Lochner and the contractor then worked together to reschedule and fast-track the project. Phase II bridge construction began immediately, with the steel manufacturer expediting fabrication of the girders while multiple contractor crews, working simultaneously, constructed the substructure. Additional contractor crews remained at work for the remainder of the project. Ultimately, the entire project was accomplished by the originally scheduled completion date; no delay was incurred.

Another notable way that Lochner brought value to TDOT in this project was in the development of a field engineering solution to a conflict between a proposed retaining wall and existing storm drainage. Rather than relocating the storm drainage, with high associated costs, Lochner’s solution was to adjust the roadway profile in this location and replace the proposed retaining wall with a median barrier wall. This solution saved TDOT approximately $400,000.

Lochner was responsible for providing the full spectrum of CEI services for the duration of the project, including contractor compliance monitoring, materials testing, progress reporting, the recording of installed quantities, the development of contractor pay estimates, the maintenance of daily work records, and response to contractor enquiries. The project’s high-volume location necessitated work zones adjacent to live traffic, adherence to a comprehensive staged construction plan, and substantial night work.