Several different design options are being considered for the replacement or repair of the Austin Avenue bridges after structural deficiencies were found.[/caption]
As Georgetown City Council drives toward a decision on whether to repair or replace the two Austin Avenue bridges spanning the North and South San Gabriel rivers, local business owners and downtown residents want to make sure the bridges retain their historic qualities and enhance pedestrian access in the area.
During the summer the Texas Department of Transportation placed load-bearing limits on the bridges after structural deficiencies were found during an inspection in December 2013. Problems included asphalt cracking, rusting and crumbling portions of concrete, Georgetown Transportation Services Director Ed Polasek said.
The load limits restrict vehicles weighing more than 48,000 pounds from driving across either bridge, Polasek said.
“Our intention and our direction from council based on the assessment done on the bridges is we have to replace the structures—both the deck and the substructure,” Polasek said. “In fact, the substructure is in worse condition than the deck.”
Polasek said because of the condition of the substructure, another inspection by TxDOT could place more weight limits on the bridges.
“We know that the substructure and the deck both have physical problems that require replacing. They are 75-year-old bridges that had 75-year design lives,” he said. “If we had been maintaining [the bridges] for the last 75 years [they could have] lasted more than 75 years, but they weren’t maintained or rehabilitated in that manner.”
Although no official decisions have been made on the design or engineering of the bridge replacements, several groups have made requests to City Council. The 2015 Road Bond Committee recommended adding a center turn lane, while a group of downtown business owners and residents want the bridges to remain at four lanes.
Polasek said regardless of which option the council goes with, the bridges should be replaced.
“We’ll take into account all the design considerations, but the one place where we will continue to stand firm is we have to replace the substructure just as much as the deck,” he said. “If you want to get the [load-bearing limits] off, you have to address that issue.”
Design indecision
After hearing about the bond committee’s plan to recommend the Austin Avenue bridges be replaced with five-lane bridges, Sam Pfiester, a former councilman and downtown property owner, said he was concerned the move could affect the push to make downtown more pedestrian-friendly.
“I became very concerned because I am the property owner on either side of the bridges on the south side,” he said. “[The five-lane] proposal would … require taking land from either side of Austin Avenue to widen not just the bridges but the road on the south side of the bridges. [The proposal] was not within the guidelines of the downtown master plan of what we are trying to make downtown—pedestrian-friendly.”
Along with other business owners, Pfiester asked Nore Winter, president of urban design firm Winter & Co., to look at the engineering report and come up with recommendations for the bridge. Winter & Co. completed the city’s downtown master plan in 2003 and the plan’s update in 2013.
“I was very pleased and not surprised by his recommendations, which is you don’t need a five-lane [roadway],” Pfiester said. “A five-lane bridge that converts to a four-lane road through a historic downtown just didn’t make a lot of sense.”
Winter’s report recommends the city repair the bridges’ decks and keep the existing substructure as well as build a separate pedestrian bridge that could have access to the North San Gabriel River hike and bike trail.
According to the Winter report, the recommendation “separates pedestrians from vehicles and develops a pedestrian bridge as an amenity unto itself.”
Polasek said whether the bridges are replaced with four lanes or five will be City Council’s decision.
However, if the bridges are replaced, he said they will have to meet American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials design guidelines, which would mean replacing the railings and widening the sidewalks, Polasek said.
“We can’t use [the current railings] on a bridge that carries traffic because they are not an approved safety barrier under current guidelines,” he said.
Councilman Keith Brainard said he believes the bridges should be replaced, but there is still time to decide on the final design.
“I think at this point we still have the opportunity to meet the objectives of everybody—the people who want the slower movement through town, easier access for pedestrians, mobility, the ability to move big trucks. Right now there is no reason in my mind that we can’t achieve all of these objectives,” Brainard said. “We are going to hear from everybody, including the city fire staff, city engineers, downtown experts and Old Town people. I like to think we can accommodate everybody.”
Cost per design
Which design is chosen could also come down to cost, Polasek said. To replace the bridges with their current four-lane design is estimated to cost $10.3 million.
The 2015 Road Bond Committee originally recommended including $14.3 million in the proposed 2015 bond (see Page 13) to replace the bridges with five-lane bridges; however, the request was eventually pulled from the bond proposal.
“Why ask a question when we already know the answer?” Brainard said. “That’s something we know we have to do, and we are going to have to bite the bullet and get it done.”
The city has been awarded $1 million for the project from the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization and applied for additional funding from the TxDOT off-system bridge replacement program.
“Just putting a dollar amount in the bond program without having these discussions and this design stuff done seemed premature, especially when we are going after additional funding sources,” Polasek said. “We have to get all of that stuff identified before we move forward.”
The TxDOT funding could cover up to 90 percent of the cost to replace the bridges with a similar four-lane design. A decision by the state is expected by early summer, Polasek said.
If any additional design upgrades, including a center turn lane or separate pedestrian bridges, are selected, Polasek said those would be paid for by the city.
Next step
Polasek said the project must be ready to begin construction in 2017 or 2018 to receive the CAMPO funding, and because of the deadline the project is a top priority for the city.
“This is going to be the priority because we can’t lose the opportunity to get this [CAMPO] funding,” he said. “And we have to get the load rating addressed for public safety reasons.”
City Council could determine which direction to go this spring during budget discussions for the 2015–16 fiscal year, Polasek said.
“I have to get funding to start the design. We are going to include the [Historic and Architectural Review Commission] and downtown folks in the design discussion,” he said. “Council is going to have to make a decision on four lanes or five lanes. Right now, we are planning on four lanes. The bond committee is adamant on recommending five. We [also] have to take into consideration the design considerations for the trail system and pedestrian access.”
Construction to replace the bridges is expected to last 18 to 24 months and could be completed in two phases with two lanes remaining open throughout the process, Polasek said.
Several different design options are being considered for the replacement or repair of the Austin Avenue bridges after structural deficiencies were found.[/caption]
As Georgetown City Council drives toward a decision on whether to repair or replace the two Austin Avenue bridges spanning the North and South San Gabriel rivers, local business owners and downtown residents want to make sure the bridges retain their historic qualities and enhance pedestrian access in the area.
During the summer the Texas Department of Transportation placed load-bearing limits on the bridges after structural deficiencies were found during an inspection in December 2013. Problems included asphalt cracking, rusting and crumbling portions of concrete, Georgetown Transportation Services Director Ed Polasek said.
The load limits restrict vehicles weighing more than 48,000 pounds from driving across either bridge, Polasek said.
“Our intention and our direction from council based on the assessment done on the bridges is we have to replace the structures—both the deck and the substructure,” Polasek said. “In fact, the substructure is in worse condition than the deck.”
Polasek said because of the condition of the substructure, another inspection by TxDOT could place more weight limits on the bridges.
“We know that the substructure and the deck both have physical problems that require replacing. They are 75-year-old bridges that had 75-year design lives,” he said. “If we had been maintaining [the bridges] for the last 75 years [they could have] lasted more than 75 years, but they weren’t maintained or rehabilitated in that manner.”
Although no official decisions have been made on the design or engineering of the bridge replacements, several groups have made requests to City Council. The 2015 Road Bond Committee recommended adding a center turn lane, while a group of downtown business owners and residents want the bridges to remain at four lanes.
Polasek said regardless of which option the council goes with, the bridges should be replaced.
“We’ll take into account all the design considerations, but the one place where we will continue to stand firm is we have to replace the substructure just as much as the deck,” he said. “If you want to get the [load-bearing limits] off, you have to address that issue.”
