Re-Alignment of US 17 in Zolfo Springs with Concrete Pavements Project Overview
The project involves realigning a segment of US 17 in Zolfo Springs, Florida, improving corridor safety and infrastructure. Contractor Ajax Paving Industries will construct a concrete roadway with bike lanes, sidewalks, and stormwater management systems. The old US 17 will become Main Street for Zolfo Springs. The project utilizes the old CSX railroad right-of-way. Contact Nik Patel for more information.
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Re-Alignment of US 17 (SR 35) in Zolfo Springs with Concrete Pavements From South of West 9thStreet to North of West 3rdStreet Hardee County, Florida Financial Project ID: 420633-3-52-01
PD&E and project information Presented by Nik Patel, Heartland Operations Engineer Contact info: Nikesh.Patel@dot.state.fl.us (863) 491-1802
About US 17/SR 35 US 17 is a major north-south arterial highway in Florida It is a component of the Florida Intrastate Highway System and the Strategic Intermodal System in Hardee County It provides the most direct route between Orlando and SW Florida The corridor serves as a major trucking route US 17 is designated as a hurricane and emergency evacuation route
Primary Goal of the Project: Improve corridor safety within Zolfo Springs Improve corridor safety within Zolfo Springs along the US 17 corridor at the intersection entering US 17 from SR 66
About the project: Contractor: Ajax Paving Industries of Florida Realign a one mile segment of US 17 from south of West 9th Street to north of West 3rd Street along the abandoned railroad right of way and Oak Street through Zolfo Springs in Hardee County Construction of a concrete roadway with curb and gutter 54-foot raised median that separates two northbound and two southbound traffic lanes New traffic signal installed along the new alignment at the SR 66 intersection
More about the projects improvements: Seven-foot bike lanes Sidewalks New underground drainage system Two stormwater ponds to manage water running off the roadway Old US 17 was dedicated by FDOT to the Town of Zolfo Springs to become Main Street
Utilization of the old abandoned CSX railroad right-of-way FDOT owns the old CSX railroad right-of-way The ROW ranges from 120 160 feet wide throughout the project corridor The railroad corridor is located west of US 17 on the east side of the roadway except at the southern limits of the project and through the Town of Zolfo Springs The railroad right-of-way was selected as the best alternative to construct the new US 17 because it was wide enough to accommodate the required 139 feet of right-of-way It met all Florida Intrastate Highway System criteria for border width and clear zone width without extensive residential and business impacts It was the most popular with the locals
Concrete versus asphalt: Why use concrete? Concrete is used for areas with heavy truck traffic Less rutting, fewer potholes Lasts longer than asphalt Costs more initially, but maintenance is less, resulting in less congestion and disruption in work areas This was a fairly small project; good for using concrete
Zolfo Springs Downtown Vision Plan Upon completion of the project, FDOT dedicated the old portion of US 17 to the Town of Zolfo Springs The Town designated it Main Street The realignment of US 17 provides for an expansion of commercial opportunities in the downtown area The realignment also routes traffic away from the businesses located along Main Street To address both the opportunity for expansion of downtown businesses and the future loss of traffic along Main Street, the Town developed the Downtown Vision Plan
Zolfo Springs Downtown Vision Plan The vision for the Main Street Core includes the development of a walkable, pedestrian-friendly area that provides opportunities for economic growth of businesses, and activities and areas of interest for residents and visitors. The plan includes: A Gateway Arch Road diet to 2-lanes of traffic On-street parallel parking Bulbouts for landscaping or art Mid-block Parklets Painted crosswalks Public art More representation for the Florida Cracker Trail
Overview of the project/before & after: Before construction: US 17 through the Town of Zolfo Springs was a four-lane undivided urban roadway There were no signalized intersections within the project limits US 17 right-of-way width through the Town of Zolfo Springs varied from 60 100 feet US 17 was not expected to be able to accommodate the expected increase in traffic
Afterconstruction: Corridor safety should improve due to: The four lane divided highway consists of two 12-foot lanes in each direction separated by a 54-foot raised median There are now paved shoulders with type E curb along both the inside and outside of the roadway There are five-foot sidewalks, which are separated from the curb by a three-foot grassed utility strip on both sides of the roadway The stormwater runoff is now collected in curb inlets and piped to retention ponds A traffic signal at the intersection of US 17 and SR 66 has been installed Main Street has been turned over to the town of Zolfo Springs
Construction Presented by: Chris Hiehle, Maintenance Manager/Contracts, Sebring Operations: Contact info: Chris.Hiehle@dot.state.fl.us (863) 471-4853
Traffic Control Plan FDOT provides an approved Traffic Control Plan (TCP) for all conventional construction projects; however, Ajax proposed a TCP which reduced the overall number of construction phases by placing temporary traffic on newly constructed asphalt base as part of a special detour.
Traffic Control Plan With completion of the project, traffic flow has been improved through safety improvements, such as raised median construction, bike lane construction, and installation of traffic signalization; as well as operational improvements such as construction of turn lanes and directional median openings.
Working with concrete pavement Concrete pavement was used for the US 17 mainline, that consisted of 12-inch Plain Cement Concrete Pavement with doweled transverse and longitudinal joints. The total quality of plain cement concrete paved was just under 47,000 square yards.
Working within an abandoned Railroad corridor The most significant challenge of working within abandoned Railroad (R/R) right-of-way (ROW) is addressing contamination that will be encountered during roadway construction. This project was identified early on to have the potential for soil contamination due to the historical presence of railroad operations.
Working within an abandoned Railroad corridor The roadway contractor, Ajax, was required to provide advanced coordination with the FDOT s Contamination Assessment & Remediation (CAR) contractor for all roadway construction activities within the areas of contamination.
Challenges Challenges Utilities: Existing utility owners included Century- Link, Comcast, FPL, Duke Energy, TECO Peoples Gas, and the Town of Zolfo Springs. No utility owners had relocated any of their utilities in accordance with the Utility Work Schedules (UWS) prior to the start of construction.
Challenges: Alignment for Trucks: The new posed concerns some business owners along the corridor who believed the traffic would now pass them by because there was no easy way for the trucks to U-turn and access businesses. alignment for truck their
Challenges: Settlement Monitoring: The new alignment required Right of Way acquisitions. As a result, construction along the corridor was extremely close to existing structures.
Weather The original contract time was awarded at 485 days. With a 100 day incentive bonus, the project had to be completed within 385 days for Ajax to achieve the maximum bonus of $550,000. The project lost approximately 58 days to weather related events such as Hurricane Irma and Tropical Storm Emily. An estimated 90 inches of rain throughout construction increased the challenge of completing on time.
Completed project Despite the numerous challenges, the project was completed on time, on budget and with no contractor claims.
Partnering This project was a perfect example of what can be achieved during construction when all project stakeholders take ownership of their respective project contributions and PARTNER to find solutions to project issues as they arise.
Road and Bridges Magazine This project was rated 10thplace by Roads & Bridges in their Top 10 Roads Projects for 2018
