2007 Project Achievement Award

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2007 Project Achievement Award Winner
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation

Braman Road Washout Calls for Baffling Solution
By Deborah Lommis • Cayuga Concrete Pipe (Montrose) • 215-788-5572

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The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) District 4 maintains more than 3,600 miles of state roadways and 2,076 bridges in Northeastern Pennsylvania, span-ning six counties including the Pocono Mountain Range. When Mother Nature completed her thawing in late spring 2005, Braman Road (SR 1018) in Manchester Township, Wayne County Pennsylvania was washed out, exposing 150 feet of corrugated metal pipe. The culvert was deemed ineffective and the road became impassable.

Braman Road is a two-lane mountainous path passing over the culvert containing Little Equinunk Creek and intersecting Route 191. Residents living on Braman Road were concerned about emergency needs and the possibility that the lengthy detour would cause life-threatening delays. Time was of the essence. Elected representatives and PennDOT officials were inundated with calls from frustrated residents demanding repair of the road.

PennDOT chose 96-inch and 78-inch diameter reinforced concrete pipe to replace the exposed culvert pipe. The pipe would have to be designed for fill heights up to 30 feet. In addition, the engineering team had to consider the high velocity of the stream, and a design solution for dissipating the hydraulic energy before the stream exited the outlet of the culvert.

PennDOT’s project team included Charles Nihen and Vince Capoccia of the Roadway Unit and Gerard Babinski and Joe Marichak of the Bridge Unit. The team decided on ring chamber stations or “baffles.” The baffle (dissipater) system was designed in accordance with PennDOT HEC-14 procedures.

The Northeast Pipe Group of Old-castle Precast, Inc. consisting of Cayuga Concrete Pipe and Kerr Concrete Pipe analyzed the project and used value engineering to save the state and the taxpayers thousands of dollars and valuable time. Each section of the complete run was designed to the amount of fill that it would actually be supporting. This allowed the state to use a smaller percentage of 96-inch diameter pipe categorized as a special design deep fill. The pipe group also submitted an innovative and enhanced ring chamber design for approval.

Baffles are used to control the exit velocity of the stream. The 176-feet of pipe required installation on a slope of 11.3 percent. Without the use of baffles, the velocity would be 27.8 feet per second. The baffle design provided for velocity reduc-tion to 8.72 feet per second. The baffle design allowed the water to flow through the 78-inch diameter pipe and tumble through the last 72 feet of the 96-inch diameter pipe, thereby reducing the exit velocity to values that do not damage or erode the downstream channel.

Little Equinunk Creek is classified as a high quality, cold-water fishery. Openings were provided in the baffle pattern at the invert of the pipe for fish migration. Soil nails were used for temporary support of trench to reduce the impact on adjoining property own-ers. Soil nailing is a stabilization method of reinforcing existing soil by installing threaded steel bars into slopes or cuts as construction proceeds from top down.

Little Equinunk Creek was diverted, tem-porarily, until the construction of the new drainage system was completed. Because the reconstruction plan involved a 250-foot impact on the stream and the ecosystem, various permits, erosion and soil plan approvals were needed from the Wayne County Conservation District, the Army Corp of Engineers and the Department of Environmental Protection.

The reinforced concrete pipe was ordered in October to complete product delivery be-fore Thanksgiving weekend. November in the mountains presents varying weather conditions, and preparation for the delivery of the pipe necessitated careful planning. Weight limits on the standard delivery route required an alternate route causing the product to be delivered on the opposite side of the project from where it was needed. A road had to be built to transport the pipe to the job site.

Normally, products with the special design characteristics of the pipe specified for the project would require at least three months for completion. The Northeast Group partnered with The Department of Transportation to provide an expeditious solution. The special designs for the deep fill pipe and the baffle system were submitted to the state and approved within days of design submission. The next challenge was timely production of the special hydraulic energy dissipaters, which were labor intensive. The pipe was manufac-tured, tested and approved within PennDOT’s schedule.

Twenty thousand cubic yards of excavated material were removed from the project. Fifteen cubic yards fit into each tri-axle. The material was hauled out of the trench, and then brought back to use as fill. Innovated thinking and technology, as well as coopera-tion between the organizations reduced the project completion time by 75%. Local citizens marveled at the accelerated site activity and Braman Road reopened months before the scheduled deadline.

Project: PA Wayne Co SR 1018 – District 4

Owner: Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) District 4

Engineering: PennDOT District 4 Engineering Department.

General Contractor: Minichi, Inc, Dupont, PA

Inspection Agencies: PennDOT District 4; Site Blauvelt Engineers (plant inspection)

Producers: Cayuga Concrete Pipe, Montrose, PA

Quantities: Approximately 150 feet of 96-inch diameter RCP with hydraulic baffles
and 78-inch diameter RCP (special design pipe collared to 96-inch diameter special design pipe)

The Northeast Pipe Group of Oldcastle Precast, Inc. consists of two plant locations in Pennsylvania (Cayuga Concrete Pipe) and two in New Jersey (Kerr Concrete Pipe). Cayuga Concrete Pipe has been a presence in the pipe market for over 48 years. The
Montrose Plant has been manufacturing concrete pipe for over 50 years. Kerr Concrete Pipe was founded in 1936. The Northeast Pipe Group manufactures 12-inch through 120-inch diameter rubber gasket and mortar joint pipe, 18-inch to 108-inch elliptical pipe, and flared ends 12-inch through 72-inch round and elliptical. See www.oldcastleprecast.com.