Highway and bridge improvement projects from nine states were recognized Oct. 10 for their contributions to environmental protection and mitigation at the American Road & Transportation Builders Association Transportation Development Foundation’s (ARTBA-TDF) eighth annual Globe Awards breakfast, held in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Established by the ARTBA Board of Directors in 1998, the Globe Awards recognize:
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private-sector firms and public-sector transportation agencies that do an outstanding job in protecting and/or enhancing the natural environment in the planning, design and construction of U.S. transportation infrastructure projects; and
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transportation construction-related product manufacturers and material suppliers that utilize exemplary environmental processes to protect and enhance the natural environment.
An independent panel of federal agency environmental specialists reviewed all of the nominations and selected the winners. The 2007 Globe Award winners are:
Highway Category
First Place: Florida Department of Transportation and PB Americas Inc.,
“Interstate-4 Reconstruction Project,” Tampa, Fla.
To upgrade an outdated I-4 corridor in the Ybor City neighborhood in Tampa, Fla., project partners PB Americas and the Florida Department of Transportation developed a context-sensitive and community oriented solution to modernize this vital east-west corridor. The project team conducted extensive research, environmental and community analysis and historic studies. They developed a plan that relocated and rehabilitated 35 historic buildings, installed new, historically accurate lighting and landscaping and emphasized modern environmental mitigation elements such as protective sound walls and water quality enhancements. The project was viewed as a community enhancement and a magnet for regional development and investment.
Second Place: Broshear Contractors, Inc., and Green Heron, Ltd., “Green Heron Wildlife Sanctuary & Wetland Habitat Park”
Third Place: Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Engineering District 9,
Federal Highway Administration, New Enterprise Stone and Lime Company, Inc.,
and Gannett Fleming, Inc.,
“Route 30 Transportation Improvement Project”
Road Category
First Place: City of Shoreline, Wash., and CH2M HILL,
“Aurora Multimodal and Interurban Bridge Project”
Aurora Avenue is a main north-south surface street in the Seattle metropolitan area and serves as a major
access route and economic corridor with some 45,000 vehicle trips per day through the Shoreline area alone. The City of Shoreline worked with CH2M HILL to upgrade an outdated and congested corridor and expand community access, economic opportunity and multimodal transportation options. The team focused on improving pedestrian and vehicle safety, pedestrian and disabled access, meeting vehicular capacity needs, improving storm water quality and streetscape amenities. To accomplish these goals, project leaders developed a Citizen Advisory Task Force, which created a 32-point checklist to establish that environmental and community needs were met. The project also employed innovative storm water management techniques as well as to manage right-of-way, landscaping and aesthetic impacts to the benefit of the community.
Second Place: RBF Consulting, County of Orange, City of Laguna Beach, Calif.,
and LSA Associates, Inc.
“SR-133 / Laguna Canyon Road Project”
Bridge Category
First Place: HDR and Friends of Missoula Parks,
“Rattlesnake Creek Pedestrian Bridge Project”
Rattlesnake National Recreation Area, near Missoula, Mont., is a popular destination for area outdoor
enthusiasts; however, access across Rattlesnake Creek was limited. Friends of Missoula Parks and local residents began looking for a solution that was context-sensitive and well integrated with the surrounding environment. Using dead and diseased trees, HDR and Friends of Missoula Parks created a new 90-ft-long, 8-ft-wide cable suspension trail bridge with sustainable materials. The design and site selection accounted for 100-year flood heights and creates a protected, but unobtrusive crossing opening a popular area to additional public access with minimal environmental impact.
Second Place: FIGG, Maine Department of Transportation (DOT), Federal Highway
Administration (FHWA), and Cianbro/Reed & Reed, JV,
“Penobscot Narrows Bridge & Observatory Project”
Third Place (tie): Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and City of Dallas,
“Interstate-75 Underpass at Churchill Way Project”
Third Place (tie): Michael Baker, Jr. Inc., Pennsylvania Department of Transportation District 1
(PENNDOT), City of Warren, Pa., and Macaro Construction Company, L.P.,
“Hickory Street Bridge Replacement Project”
Transit Category
First Place: Parsons Transportation Group, Kiewit Western, Carter & Burgess, Inc., Regional Transportation District, and Colorado Department of Transportation,
“T-Rex Project”
In the rapidly-growing Denver, Colo., metropolitan area, the project team employed a partnership approach to complete a large-scale, multimodal, integrated transportation project. The project team addressed air pollution, noise impacts, wetland affects, impacts to historic properties and parks, property relocation and water quality issues. The project was completed ahead of schedule and within budget, combining light rail, highway, bicycle, pedestrian, “intelligent transportation system” technology and other transit options. It also included 19 miles of new light rail system track, a dozen new parking facilities, 34 light rail train vehicles, new highway lanes, eight interchanges, 65 bridges, eight tunnels and related facilities. The project team employed an aggressive environmental mitigation and analysis process to ensure compliance, and also worked to ensure appropriate community support.
The Globe Awards program is a Foundation project that complements ARTBA’s “PRIDE in Transportation Construction” campaign to focus public attention on the many positive contributions the transportation construction industry has made to the U.S. economy and quality of life.
