New Jersey Bridge recognized

The National Partnership for Highway Quality has awarded its 2003 National Achievement Award to the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT).

The award was given to the NJDOT for achieving highway quality on its construction of the U.S. Rte. 9 bridge over Nacote Creek in Galloway Township, Atlantic County. Also involved in the project were the engineering firm Parsons Brinckerhoff, Princeton, N.J., and J.H. Reid General Contractor, South Plainfield, N.J.

The project involved replacing a deteriorating drawbridge built in 1922 with a 500-ft fixed span bridge. The bridge includes innovative design features never before employed on NJDOT projects. These include the use of load and resistance factor design method for the bridge design; high-performance concrete for the beams and for the prestressed cylinder piles used to support the pier caps; non-toxic, man-made materials for the fender system; and Vibro concrete columns installed to support the approach embankments walls.

The construction also faced many sensitive environmental issues including a historic property, coastal wetlands and threatened and endangered species, including the bald eagle and osprey.