Photo courtesy of ODOT
A $40 million project that will ease congestion, enhance traffic flow and improve safety along the corridor between Xenia and Beavercreek is under construction in Greene County, Ohio.
A $40 million project that will ease congestion, enhance traffic flow and improve safety along the corridor between Xenia and Beavercreek is under construction in Greene County, Ohio. Work began in early March 2023.
"It's the final component of the long-range project to upgrade U.S. 35 between I-75 at Dayton and I-64 at Charleston, W. Va.," said Kathleen Fuller, public information officer of the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) District 8. "This project came to fruition after years of dedication and hard work by not only ODOT staff, but also the participation of representatives from local government agencies. The Greene County engineer's office and Beavercreek Township administration were instrumental throughout the stages of project development, from initiation to the start of construction."
Photo courtesy of ODOT
Contractors are maintaining traffic on the affected routes, using standard maintenance of traffic (MOT) practices to assure that delays to motorists are kept to a minimum.
"Most of the impacts to traffic on U.S. 35 are limited to single-lane closures during the evening and overnight hours," said Fuller. "However, there have been some overnight, full closures in either direction for various phases of work that would include beam setting for the new overpass bridge and establishing the work zones on U.S. 35, as well as Valley Road and Trebein Road.
Additionally, full closures on both Valley Road and Trebein Road have been necessary for storm sewer installation; otherwise, traffic has been maintained on these routes with flaggers during daytime hours of operation.
In the 2017 Highway Safety Improvement Plan, the intersection of U.S. 35 with Valley Road and Trebein Road rated 105th in the state for suburban intersections for crashes from 2013-2017. Although improvements such as additional signage and flashing signage were made to address concerns, safety issues persisted, primarily due to congestion on the heavily traveled route.
Along with state and federal funding from the Transportation Review Advisory Council (TRAC), local funding commitments have totaled 20 percent of the construction costs. In addition, Beavercreek Township negotiated a land donation in the amount of $820,000 to move the project forward.
According to Dan Mendel, senior construction engineer, there are always construction challenges with large-scale projects, and the U.S. 35/Valley-Trebein interchange project is no exception.
"The volume of project work is large, with a limited duration. The construction of a new interchange with the layout of U.S. 35 at-grade intersection with Valley-Trebein roads and the Little Miami River running parallel to Valley-Trebein roads requires multiple phases. Access to work sites within each phase can be tough. In addition, the project consists of building two new bridges — one over U.S. 35 and one over the Little Miami River. This can be difficult while maintaining traffic on U.S. 35 and both Valley-Trebein roads.
"Two of the greater challenges we've encountered were at the start of construction," said Mendel. "There were more than 700 trees that had to be removed in a very short period of time due to environmental requirements. Trees were removed over a two-week period during a very wet spring last year, and many of the trees were located within environmentally sensitive areas. Also, there was Little Miami River flooding and local area flooding during spring 2023."
The Eagle Bridge Company was awarded a contract to build the interchange and complete other roadway improvements. Mendel said the contractor has extensive experience and an impressive track record constructing bridges throughout southwest Ohio.
"The company's focus is constructing quality work with minimal conflict, and it has shown with this project during our first year of construction. ODOT also is working with two construction and engineering firms, WSP Inc. and American Structurepoint, which are providing consultation and inspection services, and both have been valuable to the total-team effort."
Mendel said a majority of the new interchange footprint is in place, including embankment and the bridge over U.S. 35. New asphalt pavement on the south side of the new bridge (Valley Road) has been placed, and the U.S. 35 bridge has all the support substructure constructed, which includes the abutment ends and the center pier.
"This bridge uses concrete beams to span U.S. 35," Mendel explained. "These are in place and will support the new bridge deck. The new bridge deck is currently in the forming stage. The project uses mechanically stabilized earth [MSE] walls to hold back bridge abutment embankments, as well as off ramp embankments and are complete. The bridge over the Little Miami River, which will carry interchange ramp traffic, has one abutment and one pier of two completed."
Photo courtesy of ODOT
Approximately 290,000 cu. yds. of dirt will be moved during construction, which is a combination of embankment and excavation. The dirt comes from two off-site borrow areas.
Early site work involved excessive undercutting of poor foundational soils and stabilizing with rock and geofabric. The poor foundation soils were under new interchange embankment and all mechanically stabilized earth walls.
The primary equipment being used includes excavators, articulated dump trucks, dozers, sheep's foot rollers, a crane with pile hammer and a water truck. Materials include soil, various aggregates, steel tube piling, reinforcing steel, concrete and plastic and concrete storm sewer pipe.
Regarding the elements, "As expected, the weather has had an effect at various times since construction began, and any delays have been typical for the area," said Mendel. "These delays have not been excessive, and any lost days due to weather have been within the normal expected range."
All work is expected to be completed in 2025.
"Overall, construction has progressed extremely well, and we are pleased with the progress that has been made thus far," said Mendel. "It's extremely rewarding to work on projects that are close to home, and that will make a positive difference in the transportation system, especially once you see how the final product will improve the area." CEG
Today's top stories
