PROCEDURAL GUIDELINES FOR FEDERAL AID COUNTY BRIDGE REPLACEMENT PROJECTS

Transcription

1 Any Federal Aid county bridge replacement project shall be processed in accordance with the following guidelines. The County Engineer shall prepare the necessary documents and submit them to the Bureau of County Transportation, through the Division. The transmittal letter submitting the initial information should state when the project is to be let to contract The date requested should be a minimum of six (6) months from the time the resolution and supporting data are submitted to the Bureau of County Transportation. Any bridge being replaced with Federal Aid Bridge Replacement Funds MUST be on the Bridge Inventory, MUST have a sufficiency rating less than 50.0, and MUST be either structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. This is not a requirement when Federal Aid Surface Transportation Program (STP) funds are used. The county's special work authorization (SWA) account will be used to pay for preliminary engineering costs incurred by State personnel. If the balance drops below $1,000.00, the county will be invoiced the amount required to bring the balance back up to $2, If the project has not been authorized within three (3) years of the date of the resolution, all of the following data must be resubmitted. 1. The following information should be SUBMITTED TOGETHER: a) RESOLUTION (one with original signatures for the Bureau of County Transportation, one copy for the Division) of the county governing body setting up the project include complete structure number, bridge identification number (BIN), sufficiency rating, status, creek name, location, and county route number in the project description. Attach a letter size legible location map (1: scale official Alabama Department of Transportation county map). Examples on pages and b) Two (2) letter size portions of a 7½" USGS map showing the project location. Example on page c) Four (4) prints (one copy for the division) (1: scale location map and 7½" USGS map showing project location attached to each print) of a plan/profile sheet along with a request for an on-site hydraulic review. (Request for Bridge Hydraulic Design Form; example on pages and 12.56) Three (3) color photographs (upstream channel, downstream channel, and present structure) must be provided to the Bureau of County Transportation. 3.1

2 Plan/Profile Sheet 1) Plan view with in-place and proposed horizontal alignment shown (show geometric data). ALSO, SHOW THE LOCATION OF THE DOWNSTREAM FLOODPLAIN CROSS-SECTION. (distances, angles, stations, etc. as related to the roadway alignment.) 2) Profile view with in-place and proposed vertical alignment shown (show geometric data). Also show profile alignment under in-place bridges. 3) Profile view shall also show the floodplain cross-section taken downstream of the proposed structure. THIS SECTION SHOULD BE TAKEN FAR ENOUGH DOWNSTREAM TO ENSURE THE CROSS-SECTION IS TAKEN IN THE NATURAL FLOODPLAIN AND STREAMBED. This section should be taken ninety degrees to the floodplain which is not always parallel to the proposed structure or roadway alignment. 4) Streambed profile 500 feet (150 meters) upstream and 500 feet (150 meters) downstream of the proposed structure, for all sites with a drainage area of less than 20 square miles (50 square kilometers). REQUESTS FOR HYDRAULIC SITE INSPECTIONS WILL NOT BE FORWARDED TO THE BRIDGE BUREAU UNTIL THE ABOVE INFORMATION IS RECEIVED. For bridge replacement projects that will not require bridge size structures, no plan/profile sheets are required. However, the county will submit hydraulic data showing the size structure required, flow, etc. See examples on pages d) Project Review Consultation Form (Alabama Historical Commission). See example on pages and (one copy for the Bureau of County Transportation and one copy for Division). e) LETTER OF INTENT to use Federal Aid funds signed by the chairman of the county governing body with a letter size location map attached (one copy for Division, one copy for Bureau of County Transportation). Example on page f) LETTER OF INVOLVEMENT (4-F LANDS, ETC.) stating whether or not there is any involvement with lands from a public park, recreation area, wildlife refuge, historical site, navigable water, airport, or railroad (one copy for Division, one copy for Bureau of County Transportation). Example on page

3 If an airport is located within 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) of the project a letter, similar to the example on page 12.1, should be submitted (one copy for Bureau of County Transportation, one copy for Division). If the project significantly increases the elevation of the roadway in relation to the airport, you should contact the Bureau of County Transportation for the proper procedures to follow. If the bridge replacement project involves a structure over a railroad, a Railroad Agreement shall be required. See Section 8 for railroad procedures. g) RIGHT-OF-WAY (ROW) RECORDING DATA LETTER stating the basic width of the existing right-of-way, the date it was acquired, recording information (location of recording, deed book, and page), and whether or not additional right-of-way is required. Example on page If no recorded right-of-way exists, submit a letter stating this and state how much right-of-way will be required (one copy for Division, one copy for the Bureau of County Transportation). Preliminary Relocation Assistance Analysis is required if any additional right-of-way is necessary; use the ROW-RA-1 Form (one copy for Division, one copy for Bureau of County Transportation). Example on pages 6.11 and h) PLACE AN ADVERTISEMENT in a local newspaper stating that the county intends to apply for Federal Aid funds to construct the project. This advertisement should be published on all Federal Aid projects, whether additional right-of-way is required or not. No publisher's affidavit is required. After publication, furnish the Bureau of County Transportation one copy as it appears in the paper and one copy for the Division. Example on page i) VIEWS AND COMMENTS LETTER is prepared and sent to the review agencies listed on pages and This letter is prepared and circulated only for those projects for which additional right-of-way is required. Example on page As soon as the Bureau of County Transportation receives the above information, an up-to-date traffic count will be requested from the Transportation Planning Bureau or provided by the county in accordance with the Standards for Traffic Volume and Classification Counts as shown on page The latest accident data on record will also be requested from the Multimodal Bureau. The County Engineer should not proceed with any plan work until this information is received. 3.3

4 3. The Bureau of County Transportation will furnish the plan/profile sheet(s) to the Bridge Bureau, along with a request for a site inspection. 4. As soon as the site inspection has been made, the traffic count has been received, and the required reviews of other agencies completed, the County Engineer will be advised to prepare the categorical exclusion. An up-to-date example of the categorical exclusion will be furnished by the Bureau of County Transportation at this time. This example should be followed as closely as possible changing only the project description and information pertinent to your particular project. If additional right-of-way is required, a Farmland Conversion Impact Rating Form AD-1006 (shown on page 12.9) must be attached to each copy of the categorical exclusion. When the Form AD-1006 is initiated by the county, in addition to completing Parts I and III, also use the Alabama Department of Transportation Assessment Criteria (shown on pages ) to complete Part VI. If the total site assessment points from Part VI is less than 60, the form WILL NOT have to be sent to the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) and will be ready to accompany the submission of the categorical exclusion for the project. If the assessment is 60 points or greater, the form WILL have to be forwarded to the SCS for evaluation and processing. 5. The County Engineer will prepare the categorical exclusion (in most cases the county projects will be categorical exclusions) and submit the original and four (4) originally signed copies to this office, through the Division. The County Engineer must sign the categorical exclusion. DO NOT SEND THIS LETTER OR A COPY TO FHWA. The letter will be reviewed and forwarded to the Environmental Technical Section for their review and approval. After the approval of the Environmental Technical Section, the letter will be forwarded to the Office Engineer for further review and submission to the Federal Highway Administration for approval. Approved copies of this document are distributed to the County Engineer, Division Engineer, Environmental Technical Section, and the Bureau of County Transportation for permanent filing. THE COUNTY ENGINEER SHOULD NOT PROCEED WITH FINAL PLAN PREPARATION OR RIGHT-OF-WAY ACQUISITION UNTIL THE CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION IS APPROVED. ACQUISITION OF RIGHT- OF-WAY PRIOR TO APPROVAL OF THE CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION WILL MAKE THE PROJECT INELIGIBLE FOR FEDERAL FUNDS. 6. In the event the project is determined not to be a categorical exclusion, the County Engineer, assisted by the Bureau of County Transportation, in consultation with the Environmental Technical Section, shall prepare the necessary documents and process the project as required. 7. If the County wants the Bridge Bureau to design the required structure(s), a request must be sent to the Bureau of County Transportation with six (6) copies of the title sheet, typical section(s), plan/profile sheet(s) and a three-line profile. The Bureau of County Transportation will contact the Bridge Bureau and 3.4

5 request a cost estimate for the foundation investigation and bridge plan preparation. Once this estimate has been received, the county will be invoiced this amount. No design work will be performed until the funding for this cost has been added to the county's SWA account. 8. PRELIMINARY BRIDGE SUBMITTAL PLANS BY COUNTY OR CONSULTANT If the county utilizes consultant contract services or county personnel for the design of the required structure, a preliminary bridge layout should be submitted to the Bridge Bureau for concurrence prior to beginning work on the final bridge plans. This transmittal should include the following: a) A roadway plan & profile drawing that provides sufficient information to establish the geometrics of the proposed structure. b) A preliminary bridge layout showing the type, size, and location (TS&L) of the proposed structure. The TS&L drawing should include proposed span lengths, type(s) of girder(s), girder spacing, alignment information, stationing of abutment and bents, skew (if applicable), groundline (three line profiles) information, and profile grade data. c) Proposed foundation type along with justification for the type of foundations being proposed. d) A contact person and telephone number (also recommend furnishing address). This applies to all bridge projects (with the exception of ALDOT standard precast structures) that are to be reviewed and approved by the ALDOT Bridge Engineer. 9. FINAL BRIDGE PLANS PLANS BY COUNTY OR CONSULTANT Once the preliminary layout has been approved by the Bridge Bureau, the County/Consultant may begin work on the final bridge plans. One set of prints of the final bridge plans, including title sheet and typical section should be submitted to the Bridge Bureau at least 24 weeks prior to the requested letting date. This transmittal should include a stamped copy of the bridge design calculations and a copy of the foundation report. The Bridge Bureau will review the submitted prints and return a set of marked up prints to the County/Consultant with review comments and corrections. Once the County/Consultant has addressed all the Bridge Bureau review comments, the following items should be transmitted to the Bridge Bureau. 3.5

6 a) One set of final bridge plans on Mylar for final approval. All required signatures and seals should be affixed (i.e. County Engineer and designer of record). b) The original check prints with review comments. c) One set of revised prints for the HS-20 and operating ratings. d) Under separate cover letter (example shown on page 12.40) submit one set of revised prints to the Bureau of County Transportation for overtopping elevation data. This submittal should include a copy of the plan & profile sheet, the bridge general plan and elevation sheet, and any additional bridge sheets necessary to calculate the actual low girder elevation. Include the new BIN if available. 10. POLICY FOR COUNTY BRIDGES WITH SPAN LENGTHS OF 41 FEET OR LESS USING PILE BENT CONSTRUCTION HP 12x53 piling will be the minimum pile size used on all bridges. HP 10x42 piling will no longer be allowed in any locations. Piling used in the wire rope abutment anchor assemblies and wing piles shall be driven to refusal or 20, whichever is less. Abutment and bent piles shall be driven to refusal or to the minimum tip elevation shown on the plans. The minimum penetration for any pile shall not be less than 10 feet into natural ground and not less than 1/3 the length of the pile. If at least 10 feet of pile penetration cannot be obtained, then concrete pedestals or pilot holes shall be used. A minimum of one (1) core boring for foundation design will be required and shown on the plans with sufficient data obtained to conduct a scour analysis and a static analysis to determine minimum and estimated pile tip elevations. If the scour analysis indicates the scour depth could extend within 10 feet of the minimum tip elevation for the piling, the county will have the option of plating the entire footprint of the structure with rip-rap, even if the recommended bridge is greater than 5 spans, or considering a different foundation design with longer spans. A comparative cost analysis should be prepared by the County and approved by the State to determine which option should be used. OR Representative samples of soil defining the bed material size, gradation and distribution will be obtained from the stream bed and overbank under the proposed bridge for the purpose of performing a scour analysis as outlined in FHWA s HEC-18, Evaluating Scour at Bridges. These samples shall be furnished to 3.6

7 an independent certified lab, Division Materials Lab or Materials and Tests Lab for them to furnish the County a D-50 to be furnished with the plan-profile sheet and other required data submitted for a hydraulic site inspection. This D-50 will be used to calculate scour. If the scour analysis indicates that the area is highly susceptible to scour or if excessive velocities, (greater than 5 ft/sec.) are calculated, the site report will indicate that the entire footprint of the bridge shall be plated with rip-rap in accordance with current standard drawings. The county will have the option of plating the entire footprint of the structure with rip-rap, even if the recommended bridge is greater than 5 spans, or considering a different foundation design with longer spans. A comparative cost analysis should be prepared by the County and approved by the State to determine which option should be used. If this option is chosen and the recommended bridge is 5 spans or less, piling shall be driven to refusal as defined by the specifications and no core boring is required. If the site inspection determines that a structure longer than five (5) spans is required, then at least one core boring will be required for foundation design and scour analysis. More that one core boring is desirable for bridges longer than 5 spans. A load test will be included as a pay item on all short span (41 ft. length spans or less) county bridges. The purpose of the load test is to confirm pile bearing capacity therefore a pile driving hammer approval will be waived. 11. The County Engineer prepares a materials report and submits it to the Division for review by the Division materials Engineer. To avoid a possible delay in letting the project, this report should be submitted to the Division as soon as possible. Any requested waivers to the material specifications should be included in the materials report. The report must be signed by the County Engineer. The materials report will be reviewed and approved at the Division level by the Division Materials Engineer. A copy of the approved materials report will be sent by the Division to the Bureau of County Transportation and the Construction Bureau. Example on pages The County Engineer should contact the Division when the plans and cost estimate are complete and arrange for a PS&E review. The Bureau of County Transportation shall be notified, in writing, of the time, date, and location of the PS&E review. The Bureau of County Transportation shall be notified, in writing, of the time, date, and location of the PS& E review. A PS&E report should be prepared by the Division County Transportation Engineer and submitted to the Bureau of County Transportation with the plans (example on pages ). The Division County Transportation Engineer should be sure the final plans conform to the recommendations made in the PS&E inspection and the approved 3.7

8 categorical exclusion. PROCEDURAL GUIDELINES FOR FEDERAL AID 13. The following information should be submitted to the appropriate Division for review and approval at least 16 weeks prior to the letting date: ITEM EXAMPLE PAGE NO. Final Plans.. -- *County Cost Estimate (See note below).. -- Acquired ROW Recording Data Letter, if applicable 6.13 Earthwork Summary Submittal Sheet, if applicable 12.6 BI-1 Form (BIN Assignment Card) for Proposed Structure if applicable. -- Engineering and Inspection (E&I) Reduction Letter if applicable Engineering Personnel and Equipment Certification 12.8 Hydraulic Data Sheet, if applicable National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit Certification Plan Checklist Right-of-Way Certification Right-of-Way Encroachment Certification Utility Agreements, if applicable Utility Certificate *The county will generate a project cost estimate utilizing AASHTO-ware and submit an electronic file and a hard copy to the Division with the plans. The Division will be responsible for converting the estimate to Proposal and Estimate System (PES) format and verifying unique item numbers, quantities, and unit bid prices. This estimate should be passed electronically to the Bureau of County Transportation along with a hard copy to be submitted with the final plans. 14. Final plans and supporting data should be submitted to The Bureau of County Transportation at least 14 weeks prior to the letting date. The plan checklist, which has been used by the county and Division to check the various items, must be submitted with the plans. If the checklist does not accompany the plan assembly, the plans will be returned to the Division. Plans are checked by the Bureau of County Transportation for accuracy. Project detail drawings that are not included, or modified from the current ALDOT Special and Standard Drawing Book, are added to the plans. The plans and supporting data are submitted to the Construction Bureau for review at least 10 weeks prior to the letting date. This review is made to ensure the plans conform to Federal and State requirements. The Construction Bureau also recommends special provisions to be included in the bid proposal. Any comments made by the Construction Bureau 3.8

9 must be resolved during the first 4 weeks of this 10 week period. 15. A design risk assessment is required on all Federal Aid bridge replacement projects involving waterways or drainage relief structures. This form should be prepared and submitted to the Bureau of County Transportation after the county has received the overtopping flood data provided by the Bureau of County Transportation. Example on pages 12.3 and Minor changes and corrections in the plans will be made by the Bureau of County Transportation. Any major changes or corrections will require the plans to be returned to the county (copy of letter to the Division). After the county has addressed all changes or corrections, the plans should be resubmitted to the Division County Transportation Engineer for review and approval. The Division will then forward the revised plans to the Bureau of County Transportation. All changes have to be made and the project has to be ready to go to contract at least 6 weeks prior to the letting date. 16. The Bureau of County Transportation will prepare a project agreement approximately 4 weeks prior to the scheduled letting date for contract projects. These agreements must be approved by all parties prior to award of the contract. All material is submitted to the Federal Highway Administration requesting authorization 4 weeks prior to the letting date. 17. As soon as possible after the letting date, invoices will be prepared and sent to the county. The county's portion of the project cost and the award of the contract must be done within 30 days (4 weeks) of the letting date. IF THE COUNTY'S CHECK IS NOT RECEIVED BY THE BUREAU OF COUNTY TRANSPORTATION BY THIS DEADLINE, THE BIDS WILL HAVE TO BE REJECTED AND THE COUNTY'S FEDERAL FUNDS WILL REVERT TO THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION. After the award is made, the contractor has 15 days to return the contract to the Department of Transportation, and then the Transportation Director and the Governor have 20 days to sign the contract. After the contract is signed by all parties, the Office Engineer has 15 days to issue the work order. After the work order is issued, the contractor has 15 days to begin work unless modified by a special provision. 3.9