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LEHI, UTAH — The Utah Department of Transportation’s (UDOT) Utah County I-15 Corridor Expansion (I-15 CORE) and contractor, Provo River Constructors (PRC), will make history on March 26 when crews move the Sam White Bridge over Interstate 15 into place in one night, making it the longest two-span bridge to be moved in the Western Hemisphere.

The move, part of UDOT’s $1.725 billion I-15 CORE freeway reconstruction project, will involve extra coordination as the 354-foot, 3.8 million-pound structure’s two spans are hoisted 21 feet in the air and moved simultaneously using two sets of Self Propelled Modular Transporters (SPMT), which are hydraulic jacks on wheels controlled by a single joystick. The Sam White Bridge will move from an adjacent “bridge farm,” where it was built using Accelerated Bridge Construction (ABC), 500 feet across eight freeway lanes before being placed onto support columns already on I-15.

Construction of the bridge began in July 2010 by I-15 CORE design-builder, PRC, a joint venture of Fluor Corporation, Ames Construction, Ralph L. Wadsworth Construction, and Wadsworth Brothers Construction. PRC proposed using this technology to reduce delays from months to days to meet the project’s aggressive three-year timeline. This innovative approach at Sam White eliminates the need for six full freeway closures, reduces traffic delays, and aids the state’s economic recovery by keeping people, goods, and services moving during construction of the freeway.

To assist other states in building their own ABC programs, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is sponsoring a “Showcase Event” to highlight UDOT’s Sam White Bridge move and offered reimbursement to other departments of transportation delegates through the Our Highways for LIFE program to experience the event. In addition, interested participants are invited to the Sam White Bridge move/FHWA Showcase Workshop following the move where benefits, challenges, and opportunities of using SPMTs and other ABC technology will be discussed. Participants will learn from UDOT and its contractors’ worldwide leadership in ABC and transportation innovation, having moved nearly twice the number of bridges as all other states combined. The Sam White Bridge will be UDOT’s 23rd ABC bridge move.

The Sam White Bridge move will begin Saturday, March 26 at 11 p.m. in American Fork, Utah, and the workshop is on Sunday, March 27, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Marriott City Center in Salt Lake City. Interested transportation delegates also are invited to participate in a tour of the I-15 CORE project prior to the bridge move. For more information on viewing this demonstration of transportation innovation, visit udot.utah.gov/i15core/bridge.