BROADWAY BRIDGE
RECEIVES NATIONAL RECOGNITION BY DAVID NILLES
T
HE BROADWAY BRIDGE (HIGHWAY 70), SPANNING THE ARKANSAS RIVER BETWEEN LITTLE ROCK AND NORTH LITTLE ROCK, HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED BY THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF STEEL CONSTRUCTION (AISC).
merit or honorable mention award for
main spans of the Broadway Bridge
finishing as runner up. Overall, this
are composed of two 448-foot
competition has recognized more than
network tied-arch spans with steel
600 bridges of all sizes from all across
plate girder approaches. The lengths
the United States.
of the five approach spans vary from
The organization presented ArDOT
Some of the award-winning bridges,
126 feet to 227 feet. The final design
such as the Wabash Railroad Bridge in
consists of inclined basket-handle
Wayne County, Michigan, which won a
arches with a framed-in floor system,
prize in 1941 and still carries railroad
which lowered costs. The tied arches
with a Merit Award as part of their
traffic more than 70 years later, have
allowed a signature structure to be
2020 Prize Bridge Award Competition.
actually outlasted the companies that
constructed on the existing alignment
built them.
ahead of the anticipated 180-day
According to the AISC, the art of designing and building beautiful,
"These projects are tributes to
bridge closure by using an accelerated
efficient, economical and sustainable
the creativity of the designers and
bridge construction (ABC) technique
steel bridges has been practiced for
the skills of the constructors who
to float the arches into place. Prime
more than a century. They launched
collaborated to make them a reality,"
contractor for construction was
their Prize Bridge Competition in 1928
said AISC President Charles J. Carter,
Massman Construction Company of
as a way to showcase the beauty of
SE, PE, PhD. "Steel shines and soars
Overland Park, Kansas.
steel bridges.
on their talents and we celebrate
Since Pittsburgh’s Sixth Street Bridge won the first competition in 1928, bridges from all across the
“We are honored to receive this
the accomplishments these projects
recognition from the American
represent."
Institute of Steel Construction,”
The team of HNTB Corporation and
ArDOT Director Lorie Tudor shared.
United States have won in a variety of
Garver, LLC, was chosen to design
“The Broadway Bridge has become
categories, and at least an equivalent
the replacement of the old Broadway
an iconic part of the downtown area
number of bridges has received a
Bridge in 2011. The HNTB-designed
and we thank everyone that was
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