Hoods Creek Bridge

Background

The two-span steel girder bridge over Hoods Creek in Caledonia, Wisconsin, had deteriorated to the point that holes had developed in the deck. Abutment issues were also occurring, with sediment buildup at one abutment and scour at the other. Due to deterioration levels, Foth was tasked with designing a new bridge and new approaches along Hoods Creek Road.

Approach

In effort to prevent erosion, our team realigned the bridge with the creek. During the design process, the creek’s hydraulics were modeled to verify that the new structure not only met hydraulic opening requirements but also did not raise flood elevations upstream.

Because Hoods Creek Road dead ends east of the bridge, additional considerations were given regarding access for residents. Valuing feedback received during public information meetings, temporary approaches and a temporary structure were designed to provide access to residents during construction.

Results

Final design of the replacement bridge was a single-span slab structure that was lengthened and shifted 12 feet to the west of the original structure. Roadway approaches on either side of the bridge were also redesigned and reconstructed for roughly 200 feet in both directions. In addition to the bridge design, we provided wetland permitting, DNR coordination, and right-of-way plats to obtain easements for construction of the temporary roadway and bridge.