Storrow Drive Connector Bridge

Construction of a new Storrow Drive/Leverette Connector Bridge, connecting Boston’s Storrow Drive with Interstate-93. Part of the Central Artery project, this bridge is one of the largest single-cell trapezoidal steel box girder bridges in North America.

Client:		MassDOT
Designer:		HNTB Corporation
Size:		830 FT

 

Project Features

• Three‐span bridge structure with a main span of 830‐feet.
• 76‐foot wide roadway carrying four lanes of traffic.
• Dredging and cofferdams installed for pier foundations.
• Four concrete pilings measuring 8‐feet in diameter drilled 100‐feet down into soil and bedrock.
• Steel outer casing added to drilled shafts at the south end where liquefiable soil conditions were found.
• The entire 830-foot long steel box girder was fabricated in Florida, disassembled into sections and shipped to Boston via ocean-going barge.
• Barges maneuvered through the Charles River Dam locks with just inches of clearance.
• Hydraulic jacking system used to lift the three center sections, 295 feet weighing 650 tons.
• Splicing of the girders involved installing several thousand bolts.
• Superstructure required 1,860 tons of structural steel.
• Bridge opened to traffic eight days ahead of schedule.
• Awards: National Steel Bridge Alliance Award – Medium Long Span Category 2001