When the North Carolina Department of Transportation undertook the partial demolition and repair of the 93-year-old Tillery Lake bridge, they wanted to preserve the open spandrel, concrete arch ribs of the historic bridge and ensure that its final appearance mirrors the original.  

PCL worked in a very specific sequence to keep the bridge in balance while ensuring to not damage the arches or foundation and limiting the inconvenience to the public traveling by car or boat. 

• Created a construction access lane on an adjacent bridge as a maintenance-of-traffic solution. A barrier wall was used to effeciently protect the public and workers and the access lane was used to  efficiently receive and load out materials and equipment. 

• Performed a polyester polymer concrete (PPC) overlay mockup on a separate bridge — at no additional cost to prepare for the same overlay on the existing eastbound bridge.    

• Completed all construction without building a causeway (as the contract would have permitted), thus reducing the effect on Lake Tillery.  

• Revised the demolition plan to eliminate longitudinal saw cutting; this prevented concrete slurry from falling into the lake. We also installed a pointed and robust containment system that prevented environmental incidents. 

• Designed and installed dewatering shells around the piers at waterline allowing the application of shotcrete in the dry to complete the waterline pier protection scope. This was performed in lieu of a challenging underwater grouting operation which would be difficult to vent adequately due to a ceiling. 

We finished the bridge before adjacent road works began to ensure our operations didn’t impact the adjacent contractor. Working closely with the adjacent contractor and the Department of Transportation allowed the project team to create a win-win solution that protected the roadway from erosion and rework, ultimately saving in the overall cost.

The project team safeguarded a bridge listed in the National Register of Historic Places along with Lake Tillery by bringing a solution provider mentality and sharing in the owner's overall vision.