CONNECTIONS

Iowa’s Secondary Roads network contains around 18,500 bridges, and nearly one in four needs to be replaced in the near future. Rebuilding shorter structures can be significantly more expensive, on a per square foot basis, than larger ones because contractor mobilization costs don’t vary in proportion with bridge size. To keep such costs down, county road departments often maintain their own bridge crews to do part or all of the work on short structures.

But a number of issues have converged to make it harder for counties to drive their own piling, a necessary first step for every structure. Crane replacement costs have risen beyond what local governments can afford; safety requirements mandate extensive operator training and the equipment cannot be easily transported. This motivated several Iowa Counties to seek out and implement a new method for installing piles: via use of a vibratory pile driver.
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As more drivers use GPS based navigation aids to travel from point of departure to their destination, they sometimes rely too uncritically on what the devices tell them to do.

Iowa’s County Engineers remind rural travelers to always pay attention to the character and condition of the roads and bridges that the navigation software tells them to use. Computers see all roads as equally usable, regardless of surface type and aren’t aware if a bridge is posted or a road is closed. This can lead to extra travel, a need for roadside assistance or even the loss of a bridge.
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On Feb 7, 2017, Buchanan County Engineer Brian Keierleber, hosted delegations of road officials from the Federal Highway Administration, Iowa DOT, Illinois DOT and Peoria County, Illinois, who came to see innovative bridge design, materials and construction methods that his county has used. Buchanan County has been a consistent leader, over two decades, in trying out new forms of bridge construction.
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