The New I-40 (Construction Updates)

[Bellaboo]

Are they ever going to replace that horrible bridge that is right after you pass the outlet mall? I don't think this is the bridge that is being talked about. This bridge is part of the highway and is 6 lanes wide. It is actually a double bridge, 3 lanes east 3 lanes west.

Also, this bridge passes over a river or creek.

This is the bridge being worked on referenced in post 1758.

[OKCisOK4me]

Plupan....two bridges are to be worked on. I-40 bridge over North Canadian River (just west of Council Road) and the Rockwell overpass. There are also bridges in Yukon being worked on. Mustang Road/State Highway 4 and the I-40 bridge over Garth Brooks Boulevard.

[Plutonic Panda]

This is the bridge being worked on referenced in post 1758.

Plupan....two bridges are to be worked on. I-40 bridge over North Canadian River (just west of Council Road) and the Rockwell overpass. There are also bridges in Yukon being worked on. Mustang Road/State Highway 4 and the I-40 bridge over Garth Brooks Boulevard.

Are they going to completely replace them?

[OKCisOK4me]

From what I read, Rockwell will be completely replaced (that old style arched look will go bye bye) while the North Canadian bridge will be redecked? There are others that know more. Mustang Road will be completely replaced and I think the bridge over GBB will just have inside lanes added. I've made my observations based off the page linked below and some other information several posts back.

Oklahoma City Metro Construction Updates

[Snowman]

From what I read, Rockwell will be completely replaced (that old style arched look will go bye bye) while the North Canadian bridge will be redecked? There are others that know more. Mustang Road will be completely replaced and I think the bridge over GBB will just have inside lanes added. I've made my observations based off the page linked below and some other information several posts back.

Oklahoma City Metro Construction Updates

It kind of looks like they will be adding them to the outside of the existing lanes at GBB, not sure though.

[OKCisOK4me]

It kind of looks like they will be adding them to the outside of the existing lanes at GBB, not sure though.

That will work too. I almost put in that post instead of 'others' that 'Snowman' will have more information ;-)

[Plutonic Panda]

Wow, that bridge over the river needs to be completely replaced. It's almost as bad as the crosstown was, actually kind looks worse in a way.

[OKCisOK4me]

Wow, that bridge over the river needs to be completely replaced. It's almost as bad as the crosstown was, actually kind looks worse in a way.

Refer to my post #1755 on this very page ;-)

[Plutonic Panda]

Refer to my post #1755 on this very page ;-)

Oh, sorry. I somehow completely missed all of that ;P. . . thanks for the info!

[Bellaboo]

They are building a new deck to connect the 2 bridges over the N Canadian. They've had 3 cranes in there for several months putting in piers in the river bottom. I noticed today that they have most of the concrete torn out on the barrier wall of the inside lanes of the bridges. They have a lot of reinforcing steel connecting the decks between the bridges now. When they are finished, it'll add an inside shoulder lane that they didn't have before.

[Plutonic Panda]

They are building a new deck to connect the 2 bridges over the N Canadian. They've had 3 cranes in there for several months putting in piers in the river bottom. I noticed today that they have most of the concrete torn out on the barrier wall of the inside lanes of the bridges. They have a lot of reinforcing steel connecting the decks between the bridges now. When they are finished, it'll add an inside shoulder lane that they didn't have before.

That's great! I still want them to rebuild the entire bridge though. I'm guessing redecking is where they replace the support beams? The lanes get narrower as well from the newer part.

[Buffalo Bill]

That's great! I still want them to rebuild the entire bridge though. I'm guessing redecking is where they replace the support beams? The lanes get narrower as well from the newer part.

Re-decking is where they replace the concrete deck, the driving surface, not the beams.

Why do you want them to replace the entire bridge? Once it is re-decked, how would you know they didn't?

[Plutonic Panda]

Re-decking is where they replace the concrete deck, the driving surface, not the beams.

Why do you want them to replace the entire bridge? Once it is re-decked, how would you know they didn't?

Oh, okay I see now. That is ok, as long as it's going to last. I would just hate for them to do this and find the bridge is structurally deficient and have to replace it. Anyhow, as long as the surface is repaved, that is the main thing.

[OKCisOK4me]

My guess is that they already checked the bridge for structural deficiencies.

[Plutonic Panda]

Remember man, this is ODOT we're talking about here lol, but yeah hopefully so haha

[Snowman]

Oh, okay I see now. That is ok, as long as it's going to last. I would just hate for them to do this and find the bridge is structurally deficient and have to replace it. Anyhow, as long as the surface is repaved, that is the main thing.

Structurally deficient can mean different things, it can be for bad condition of the bridge structure or deck, which it's deck did need replaced, the structure other than the deck probably has at least fifty years of usable life left. It could also be just for it being very under capacity for current vehicle counts or below current design, like how there was no room for a vehicle to break down from the left side, which someone else said was being corrected by expanding it to the middle.

[catch22]

Structurally deficient can mean different things, it can be for bad condition of the bridge structure or deck, which it's deck did need replaced, the structure other than the deck probably has at least fifty years of usable life left. It could also be just for it being very under capacity for current vehicle counts or below current design, like how there was no room for a vehicle to break down from the left side, which someone else said was being corrected by expanding it to the middle.

Structurally deficient means exactly that. The load structure is not sufficient. You are thinking of functionally obsolete.

[Larry OKC]

Couldn't find the online link from Friday's paper, but here is the ODOT insanity...they are having another I-40 interchange/exit 1/10th of a mile from the current one at Penn, literally a couple of blocks!

Somehow they think this is going to relieve congestion at Western. Who is going to use this interchange that isn't already using the Penn exit??? I have never seen the Penn offramp backed up (the Penn overpass and Penn/Agnew onramp at evening rush hour is another story). The only advantage I can see to it is on westbound traffic being able to get on a tad earlier and depending on how they have the lanes configured, maybe bypassing the cluster**** that is the recently opened Penn/Agnew onramp & the 2-lane I-44 north exit. I just don't see most folks exiting off at Penn or Virginia to get into downtown. It is not a functional downtown exit.

DOWNTOWN ACCESS TO GROW
BY MICHAEL MCNUTT

Eastbound motorists wanting to enter downtown Oklahoma City from Interstate 40 Crosstown should have another option in about a year.
...
The work calls for building an interchange for the new downtown boulevard for eastbound I-40 near Virginia Avenue at the west end of the proposed downtown boulevard. ...

(click on thumbnail for larger image)

“Hopefully, this will relieve some of the congestion that is occurring at the Western Avenue interchange at this time,” Green said. “Right now they have no options but Penn (Pennsylvania Avenue) and Western at the west end.”

Thats because they eliminated those exits when they did the relocation. Amazingly, the reason that was given to me by ODOT was modern design doesn't allow for exchanges in close proximity to each other. For safety reasons, the weaving in and out of traffic/lane changes caused by that ended up with the removal. If what they claim is true, why did they put all of these interchanges on the western end of it Agnew/Boulevard/Penn??? They didn't follow their own rationale.

[HangryHippo]

Couldn't find the online link from Friday's paper, but here is the ODOT insanity...they are having another I-40 interchange/exit 1/10th of a mile from the current one at Penn, literally a couple of blocks!

Somehow they think this is going to relieve congestion at Western. Who is going to use this interchange that isn't already using the Penn exit??? I have never seen the Penn offramp backed up (the Penn overpass and Penn/Agnew onramp at evening rush hour is another story). The only advantage I can see to it is on westbound traffic being able to get on a tad earlier and depending on how they have the lanes configured, maybe bypassing the cluster**** that is the recently opened Penn/Agnew onramp & the 2-lane I-44 north exit. I just don't see most folks exiting off at Penn or Virginia to get into downtown. It is not a functional downtown exit.


(click on thumbnail for larger image)

Thats because they eliminated those exits when they did the relocation. Amazingly, the reason that was given to me by ODOT was modern design doesn't allow for exchanges in close proximity to each other. For safety reasons, the weaving in and out of traffic/lane changes caused by that ended up with the removal. If what they claim is true, why did they put all of these interchanges on the western end of it Agnew/Boulevard/Penn??? They didn't follow their own rationale.

Larry, I'd advise you to save yourself some pain and quit trying to make sense of anything ODOT does.

[Larry OKC]

OnlyOne: unfortunately I have to live with their ineptitude everyday as my employer is just off the Penn interchange.

[Buffalo Bill]

Larry, there is no new exit at Virginia. This project is the west connection to the boulevard. It will continue the existing eastbound "flyover" bridge.

[HangryHippo]

OnlyOne: unfortunately I have to live with their ineptitude everyday as my employer is just off the Penn interchange.

Sorry to hear that, Larry.

[OKCisOK4me]

Couldn't find the online link from Friday's paper, but here is the ODOT insanity...they are having another I-40 interchange/exit 1/10th of a mile from the current one at Penn, literally a couple of blocks!

Somehow they think this is going to relieve congestion at Western. Who is going to use this interchange that isn't already using the Penn exit??? I have never seen the Penn offramp backed up (the Penn overpass and Penn/Agnew onramp at evening rush hour is another story). The only advantage I can see to it is on westbound traffic being able to get on a tad earlier and depending on how they have the lanes configured, maybe bypassing the cluster**** that is the recently opened Penn/Agnew onramp & the 2-lane I-44 north exit. I just don't see most folks exiting off at Penn or Virginia to get into downtown. It is not a functional downtown exit.


(click on thumbnail for larger image)

Thats because they eliminated those exits when they did the relocation. Amazingly, the reason that was given to me by ODOT was modern design doesn't allow for exchanges in close proximity to each other. For safety reasons, the weaving in and out of traffic/lane changes caused by that ended up with the removal. If what they claim is true, why did they put all of these interchanges on the western end of it Agnew/Boulevard/Penn??? They didn't follow their own rationale.

Makes absolute no sense whatsoever. If you look at Google Maps, between Reno & I-40 sits W&W Steel. Their business would have to be chopped in half to have an exit there.

[HangryHippo]

Larry, there is no new exit at Virginia. This project is the west connection to the boulevard. It will continue the existing eastbound "flyover" bridge.

BuffaloBill, besides the obvious reason of cost, do you know why ODOT doesn't build flyover ramps at interchanges? Is cost the only reason or does someone at ODOT not see them as the preferred design?

[Plutonic Panda]

BuffaloBill, besides the obvious reason of cost, do you know why ODOT doesn't build flyover ramps at interchanges? Is cost the only reason or does someone at ODOT not see them as the preferred design?

SOMEONE PLEASE ANSWERS THIS MANS QUESTION!!!!!!!! lol. . . I would like to know this as well.