M AGUIRE G ROUP I NC . Experienc e: Trans portation R a i l M B T A
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Experienc e: Trans portation R a i l M B T A
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Merrimack River & Approach and Washington Street Bridge Inspections Haverhill, Massachusetts After the 2007 collapse of a large truss bridge in Minneapolis, Maguire Group was contacted by the MBTA to conduct an immediate inspection of the bridge crossing the Merrimack River in Haverhill. Built in 1919, the Merrimack River Bridge is the only bridge in the MBTA system with a similar deck truss design as the Minneapolis bridge. The bridge superstructure is supported by four stone masonry piers and two stone masonry abutments at the river crossing. The total span length of the bridge is 712 feet across the river. The bridge is on the MBTA Commuter Rail System and is part of the mainline to New Hampshire and Maine; thus inspection required close coordination with the MBTA and the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR), the operator of the rail lines.
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Maguire Group was the prime consultant for a team that was retained by the MBTA to provide bridge inspection and rating services. The multi‐year assignment included the inspection of 23 bridges, and the rating of 80 bridges. The bridges were all different in terms of number of spans, bridge type, and condition. From 2005 to 2008, Maguire inspected and rated masonry arches, steel through girders, box culverts, pipe culverts, precast, prestressed concrete beam bridges, through trusses, timber trestles, and rigid frame bridges. All work was performed in accordance with the latest American Railway Engineering and Maintenance‐of‐Way Association (AREMA) criteria. In many cases, available data to perform the rating calculations was not readily available, so supplemental testing and investigatory work were performed in order to provide an accurate load rating for the various bridges.
After receiving a call on a Friday afternoon, Maguire had a four‐person crew of bridge engineers and a work barge with a lift mobilized and working on the following Monday morning. To conduct the in‐depth inspection, Maguire secured specialized equipment including a work barge, a personnel lift, and bucket trucks equipped with hi‐rail gear. We also developed a traffic management plan and engaged flagmen to assist so work could be conducted with minimal interruption to traffic flow. As in‐depth inspection of the bridge began, Maguire simultaneously conducted a search of available plans in MBTA archives, which resulted in obtaining the original fabrication drawings. Our inspection considered not only the current condition of the members but also verification of sizes, dimensions, rivet spacing, and so forth, so we would have all information necessary to began rating or analyzing the bridge without further research or field work. The final inspection deliverables included three separate inspection reports (one for each bridge), an executive summary of the river bridge inspection, and an underwater inspection report. Maguire also performed a structural evaluation of the Merrimack Bridge truss gusset plates using methodology developed by the FHWA in the aftermath of the Minnesota I‐35W bridge collapse.
1 A Metric Engineering Group Company
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Bridge Inspection & Rating Services MBTA Systemwide, Massachusetts
The program included the coordination, management, field investigation and verification, rating calculations and written reports per MBTA and AREMA specifications. As part of the rating report, Maguire provided recommendations on upgrading and maintaining the structural integrity of the bridges. Of particular importance was the inspection and rating of the MBTA railroad bridge over the Merrimack River in Haverhill. Rating this bridge included working stress and fatigue stress evaluations.
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Maguire Group was retained by the MBTA to provide bridge inspection, inventory, bridge rating and written reports for 35 railroad bridges on the Lowell, Haverhill, Weston, Stoughton, Fitchburg and Milford branches of the MBTA. This was the first phase of an extensive statewide program. Included in this assignment were a variety of structures such as steel stringer, plate girder, steel through‐girder, steel through‐truss, timber trestle, stone masonry arch, and concrete‐lined stone arch bridges.
Subsequent to the first phase efforts, a design project was initiated in 1994. This project provided for design of a permanent catwalk inspection system for the 708'+, four‐ span deck warren truss and single‐span warren through‐truss Merrimack River Bridge (Br. 32.38). The work included the design of an inspection system that incorporated security prevention devices, method of travel between spans, analysis, and attachment to the existing truss spans that would not inhibit or reduce the structural integrity of the bridge. Due to the configuration of the bridge, a bridge permit application was prepared to request a waiver for vertical clearance reduction from the United States Coast Guard. The bridge also listed on the Massachusetts Historic Register and required rehabilitation coordination with the Massachusetts Historic Commission, local, state, and environmental agencies. Maguire also assisted the MBTA with bidding documentation, construction problem resolution, construction advice and periodic construction site evaluations.
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Bridge Inspection Programs (1992 /1995) Various Towns, Massachusetts
The design required replacement of the entire bus shed and the mezzanine level of the subway station, plus extensive replacement of the subway tunnel structure. Excavation in public roadways and at existing property lines required skillful placement of excavation support structures and continuous monitoring of movement in adjacent buildings. With the water table above the bottom of the tunnel, extensive dewatering was necessary. These efforts to stabilize the tunnel structure while existing gravity loads were reduced, were continued until the new construction replaced the deal loads that held the tunnel in equilibrium.
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This $30‐million renovation to an existing subway station and bus shed involved working closely with the MBTA to define the scope of work, establish probable construction costs, complete the design, and administer construction. As the primary design consultant on this project, Maguire Group provided overall project management; architectural design; and structural, civil, geotechnical, mechanical, electrical and traffic engineering services. Maguire also worked with the local community to identify impacts from the proposed construction efforts and produced a construction phasing program that allowed continued use of the subway station during the three‐year construction period.
Handicapped accessibility improvements were made throughout the facility ranging from the addition of three elevators for access to the train platforms, to new tactile warning strips, curb cuts, accessible collector’s booths, and support spaces. The project involved selective demolition to build the new elevators, structural modifications, foundations, pedestrian tunnel structures, and new entrances and exits. Areas of the MBTA Red Line tunnel were exposed to repair structural elements and leaks, or for replacement of finishes. The station modernization also included upgrading of finishes, signage, historic restoration, and fire alarm, electrical, mechanical, HVAC and communications systems. As far back as the early 1990s when this project took place, “green” and sustainable features such as natural lighting and low‐maintenance finishes were utilized. Surface areas included upgrades to landscaping, curbs, sidewalks, accessible ramps, and utility relocations or upgrades.
Broadway Station Renovation Design South Boston, Massachusetts Maguire Group performed renovation design services at Broadway Station as part of the MBTA’s overall major design effort to modernize its subway stations, some of these among the oldest in the country. Fundamental changes had been implemented at Broadway under other contracts, including extension of the platforms, reconstruction of the headhouses, and renovation of the fare collection mezzanine. In the early 1990s, Maguire implemented a comprehensive program of improvements at the platform level incorporating new floor, wall and ceiling finishes; new lighting; plus installation of CCTV, train announcement, and police talk‐back systems.
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Andrew Station Renovation Construction, Design and Project Management Services South Boston, Massachusetts
Orange Line Technical Study and Environmental Impact Analysis Needham, Massachusetts This $350,000 project in the mid‐1980s included a technical study and environmental impact analysis for the conversion of seven‐and‐a‐half miles of an operating commuter railroad facility to rapid transit operation. The technical study included an evaluation of several alternative transit modes and other public transportation strategies which could be adopted within a section of the Southwest Corridor, extending from the fringes of the urban area of Boston into the suburban community of Needham. The financial implications of the various alternatives were analyzed concurrently with the engineering aspects of the project. Maguire’s environmental impact analysis addressed the alterations generated directly and indirectly by the transit facility, as well as the technical and financial feasibility of using joint development opportunities to achieve community goals. Major emphasis during the study period was placed on liaison with the general public in order to ensure that the final solution reflected community goals.
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Ceramic tile was used extensively on floors, where it replaced bare concrete. The rhythm of the existing columns and exposed beams at the ceiling is echoed by granite feature strips that lend interest to the field of ceramic pavers and five scale to the 250‐ft‐long platform edges, in accordance with ADA guidelines, to increase safety for visually‐impaired patrons. An unusual effort was undertaken to involve the surrounding community directly in the renovation. Neighborhood school children made ceramic tiles that were mounted on platform columns. While children’s designs were utilized previously for tiles in another station, this was the first time that children executed their designs in clay on their own. In 1993, Broadway Station was the recipient of the Boston Society of Architects’ “Art and Architecture Collaboration” Award, and also a Ceramic Tile Distributors Association (CTDA) Grand Diamond Award for commercial renovations.
MBTA Police Headquarters Boston, Massachusetts In the early 1990s, Maguire Group was commissioned to convert an existing 50,000‐SF industrial building in Boston into the Headquarters for the MBTA Police. Program requirements were established to meet the needs of the MBTA Police. Housed in the facility are the administrative and operations departments, community affairs department, holding‐detention areas, and complete locker and support facilities for a 200‐person police force. This facility was designed with a state‐of‐the‐art communications system. It also provides for complete handicapped accessibility in conformance with ADA guidelines and Massachusetts accessibility requirements. The $6‐million project involved hazmat abatement as well as seismic upgrades.
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TRANSPORTATION RAIL MBTA
Broadway Station Renovation Design (Continued)
Maguire was responsible for surveys and photogrammetric mapping; R‐O‐W acquisition plans; utility relocations; tunnel ventilation and fire protection systems; preliminary geotechnical engineering; and structural design of the ventilation structures. Maguire was also responsible for the overall coordination of the traffic maintenance plan which included major arterial streets, two active passenger and freight railroad lines, and bus and rapid transit lines. An essential component of the project was the use of the railroads for disposal of tunnel excavation materials to lessen construction impacts in the residential neighborhoods. The project required temporary railroad relocations and construction staging to allow station construction under that facility.
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As a major subcontractor to Bechtel Inc., Maguire was responsible for about 40% of the design engineering for this 2‐mile, $110‐million rapid transit extension from Harvard Square in Cambridge to Davis Square in Somerville. In addition to the design of a twin tube‐driven tunnel in deep rock, the 1988 project included coordination of the design of three underground transit stations. One of the stations included an underground bus transfer facility and another included an operating railroad station. This project was also designed to be handicapped accessible.
Management Facility for the Red Line Boston, Massachusetts In the early 1990s, Maguire Group designed this MBTA Management Facility to serve as the operational headquarters for the Red Line, one of the four intersecting rapid transit lines serving the Boston metropolitan area. The 7,200‐SF building contains supervisory and administrative offices, a trainmen’s lobby and associated crew quarters and locker rooms, and a train starter’s booth with a mimic board for the entire Red Line system running south from Cambridge through downtown Boston to Quincy and Braintree. Located near JFK/UMass Station, the building is literally wedged into a minimal site at the south end of the station’s Braintree platform at a point where an elevated highway viaduct crosses the MBTA right‐of‐way. Accessible both from the platform and, secondly, from grade, the building spans the Braintree tracks and an adjacent Conrail line. From this position, however, the starters have an excellent direct visual command of movements on all four of the rapid transit tracks serving this key intermodal station. The unusual building configuration entailed construction over active rail lines. Construction operations were planned to occur between periods of longer headways and overnight to maximize productivity. Complicating the project, however, were extremely poor soil conditions that dictated the rise of pile foundations. Some remediation of contaminated soil was also involved. The structure consists of a braced steel frame atop cast‐in‐place concrete piers. An insulated aluminum panel forms the weatherskin. Heating and cooling are provided by rooftop‐mounted gas‐fired units. Maguire, as the prime consultant, was responsible for all design and construction services, including furniture and interiors work. Structural engineering and communications systems consulting were performed by subconsultants.
5 A Metric Engineering Group Company
TRANSPORTATION RAIL MBTA
Red Line / Davis Square Extension Cambridge‐Somerville, Massachusetts
This project consisted of the addition of three ventilation shafts to the existing MBTA Red Line tunnel. Maguire provided the preliminary and final design services for Shafts R‐16 and R‐17. Shaft R‐11 was advanced to the preliminary design phase. One of these shafts included emergency egress provisions for passengers in the event of fire in the subway. The residential nature of the neighborhood where two of the three shafts were located required special acoustical and engineering design to meet stringent noise‐abatement criteria. The need to keep the busy Red Line operating while connecting the new vent structure to the existing tunnels 50 feet below the groundwater table produced unique construction challenges and required sophisticated engineering design procedures. Special emphasis was placed on urban site integration to blend the structures with the fabric of the neighborhood. This involved considerable architectural study culminating in the final shapes and finishes selected for the ventilation shaft buildings. Combating graffiti and discouraging the congregation of youth groups was also an important consideration that was responsively and responsibly handled.
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Red Line Tunnel Ventilation Shafts R‐11, R‐16, and R‐17 Boston, Massachusetts
This assignment also included the updating of a sizeable portion of the three system‐wide MBTA ventilation studies performed earlier for the Authority. The project took two years to complete at a cost of $9 million.
Tunnel Ventilation Studies Boston, Massachusetts At the time, the MBTA Subway System consisted of the Blue, Orange, Red and Green Lines. Elements of the system dated back to the late nineteenth and early part of the twentieth centuries and included the oldest subway system in the United States and the Western Hemisphere. Over the years, some of its components had undergone significant changes and improvements, while others had been left almost unchanged since the time of their original construction. Maguire's investigation of these original subway components or elements revealed some were inadequate to cope with situations where public safety might be at stake. One such important consideration was the handling of an emergency situation such as a fire within the tunnels. Such an event, although infrequent, could pose hazards and dangers to public safety of a magnitude unequaled anywhere else in the subway system operation. This situation was, to a great extent, due to original design limitations and partially due to the deterioration of the system as a function of its age. The end product of the study consisted of a series of recommendations on improvements to the ventilation system and its components, and to the remote control, communications, and smoke detection systems needed to enhance passenger safety in emergency situations. In order to achieve these objectives, a four‐step methodology was employed. The first site was to identify the characteristics and capabilities of the mechanical, electrical and structural components of the existing ventilation system. Next, basic design criteria and parameters were established as design guidelines. Third, the recommended improvements were defined and evaluated. Finally, these were combined with other factors and synthesized into an implementation strategy.
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TRANSPORTATION RAIL MBTA
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