Tag: WSDOT: Page 7

Construction Equipment

Repairs to Big Bertha will require a 12-story pit and removing the tunnel-boring machine’s cutterhead

Officials from the Washington State Department of Transportation have announced that in order to repair the world’s largest tunnel-boring machine, her head will need to come off. The announcement, which came during a presentation to city council members in Seattle, comes nearly three weeks after WSDOT officials announced that Big Bertha would be out of […]

February 27, 2014

Construction Equipment

Tunnel-boring machine Big Bertha shut down for “months” due to complexity of needed repairs

Washington State Department of Transportation officials say Big Bertha, the world’s largest tunnel-boring machine, is likely out of commission for months. An inspection conducted after the machine overheated in late January found that several cutterhead openings were clogged with dirt along with considerable damage to seals around the machine’s main bearing, according to a report […]

February 11, 2014

Construction Equipment

Tunnel-boring machine Big Bertha moves forward 2 feet in test run to see if blockage is fully removed

After nearly two months of downtime caused by a steel pipe stuck in her teeth, Big Bertha, the world’s largest tunnel-boring machine, briefly went back to work beneath Seattle. According to a report from the Associated Press, the Washington State Transportation Department announced that Bertha moved two feet on Tuesday which was just enough progress […]

January 30, 2014

Construction Equipment

A steel pipe is what brought Big Bertha, the world’s largest tunnel-boring machine, to a halt

The mystery is solved—in part at least. After Big Bertha, the world’s largest tunnel-boring machine, was brought to an abrupt halt on December 6th, officials at the Washington State Department of Transportation were stumped as to what was in the way. Now they know that the obstruction is a large steel pipe. A steel pipe […]

January 6, 2014

Home

No. 6 in 2013: Big Bertha digs in before being stopped in her tracks

There’s been a lot of excitement this year about the world’s largest tunnel boring machine. Named “Big Bertha,” she arrived in Seattle in April where she is digging a 1.7-mile tunnel for the new State Route 99. The $80 million machine stands five stories tall and moves along at 3 inches per minute. Despite her […]

December 30, 2013

Construction Equipment

Unstoppable Force, Immovable Object: Seattle’s Big Bertha halted by mystery object

Has Big Bertha met her match? She has, at least for the time being. The world’s largest tunnel-boring machine was recently brought to a halt 60 feet beneath the streets of Seattle, Washington when it hit an unknown object and could move no farther, reported KOMOnews.com. The five-story head of the machine was completely brought […]

December 19, 2013

Roadbuilding

20,000 Washington residents expected to celebrate Walk to School Day

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) announced Monday that it estimates 20,000 students, parents, teachers and community leaders in Washington will participate in International Walk to School Day on Wednesday. Walk to School Day is celebrated to encourage students to try walking or biking to school rather than driving or riding in a motor […]

October 7, 2013

Roadbuilding

MAP-21: The good, the bad and the lessons learned

With reauthorization less than a year away, many agencies are thinking about ways lawmakers can improve the new federal bill. Four American Public Works Association (APWA) Transportation Committee members joined last month at the APWA Congress and Exposition in Chicago, Illinois, to lead a discussion about the good and bad of the Moving Ahead for […]

September 30, 2013

Roadbuilding

Crews move I-5 permanent replacement span into place

[Correction: The article previously noted that WSDOT expects work to be completed in early October. It has been edited to reflect the correct time frame, in mid November.) The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) announced Sunday that the permanent replacement bridge for the Interstate 5 Skagit River Bridge opened to traffic over the weekend. […]

September 16, 2013

Roadbuilding

DOT Loses State’s Trust

Delays and redesign costs have added an extra $128 million to the Washington State Department of Transportation’s (WSDOT) Highway 520 bridge project, reports The Columbian. The design caused cracks in the giant pontoons, causing them to change their plans. The reserve fund for this project is $250 million, and the state has no plans for […]

September 4, 2013

Roadbuilding

More than 200 Washington bridges are fracture-critical

More than 200 of Washington state’s bridges are classified as fracture-critical and could collapse if a key component of the bridge fails, according to KUOW. Of those bridges, at least three have been struck multiple times in the past five years, putting the bridges at a higher risk of collapsing. The Interstate 5 span that […]

July 17, 2013

Business

How collapsed I-5 bridge was reopened with a temporary span

Traffic is once again flowing over Washington state’s Skagit River as a temporary span has been set in place on the Interstate 5 bridge that suffered a partial collapse last month. According to our sister site Better Roads, the Washington State Department of Transportation reopened the bridge with restrictions. Vehicles traveling across are limited to […]

June 19, 2013