AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications – 2008 Interims Released
Standards and Codes
Changes in Geotechnical Engineering Practice in Arizona
[Editor] Note: NCS Consultants, LLC is Randy Post’s full time employer…ie. my day job! [/Editor]
There are some significant changes being made to the state of the practice in geotechnical engineering in Arizona. NCS Consultants, LLC has prepared three policy memoranda for the Arizona Department of Transportation or ADOT that have been issued to consultants all over the State. These memos are on the topics of bearing capacity and settlement of spread footings and retaining walls, the design of drilled shaft foundations in gravelly soils, and the preparation of drilled shaft axial capacity charts for use by bridge engineers.
Although primarily applicable to upcoming ADOT projects implementing the AASHTO 2007 LRFD code, the memos will have a ripple effect down through other local agencies within the state who frequently defer to ADOT guidelines for geotechnical engineering. Also, the memos and the ADOT/NCS approach to LRFD implementation in geotechnical engineering were presented by NCS at the 2008 TRB Conference in Washington D.C., and many other state DOTs and the FHWA were very excited about the memos. The approach used if not the exact content may become a model for other agencies. More info and links to download the policy memoranda are provided after the break.
Press Releases
States Forced to Delay Millions of Dollars in Highway Contracts
[UPDATE 9/11/08] Yesterday the senate broke through their deadlock and approved $8 Billion to restore the solvency of the highway trust fund. Very good news indeed. [/UPDATE]
[Editor] From American Association of Highway and Transportation Officials, released September 9, 2008. Contact: Tony Dorsey 202-624-3690 [/Editor]
States have put the brakes on millions of dollars of highway construction projects and are scrambling to substitute scarce state funds for the federal funds that have been cut off due to the crisis in the Highway Trust Fund.
“States are suspending new contract awards, halting right-of-way acquisition and looking for ways to stop on-going construction while maintaining public safety,” said AASHTO Executive Director John Horsley. “It is truly a crisis that Congress must resolve immediately. Every day the federal IOUs are piling up and the states’ financial hole gets deeper.”
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters announced on Friday that the federal government would slow down reimbursements to the states, and would likely be able to make only partial payments beginning next week, due to insufficient funds in the Highway Trust Fund. She has urged Congress to enact by the end of the week an $8 billion transfer from the General Fund to preserve the solvency of the Highway Trust Fund. Action is pending in the Senate.
More than a dozen states have detailed the impacts of the federal default on state programs, either in news releases or via media reports. Those impacts are available on the AASHTO website www.transportation.org or at the following links: [Editor] Read on for the rest of the press release. [/Editor]
Project Related
Nicholson Continues Work for the University of Colorado’s Athletic Facilities Expansion
Nicholson Construction Company, a GeoPrac sponsor, has been working on 68,000 square feet of shoring and permanent retaining walls for an indoor practice football field and running track, as well as two levels of underground […]