Bridge completes secure perimeter road at airport

As part of a complex, multi-phased safety improvement project, General Mitchell International Airport needed to complete the secured perimeter road around the airport. To do so, the final components consisting of a new bridge and its approaches were built over State Highway 38, also known as Howell Avenue. Our bridge, roadway and aviation engineers designed these new, final components to allow airport support vehicles to access all of the airfield without crossing open taxiways and runways or traveling on public roads. We also provided construction administration services for this new $7.5 million structure.

The road and bridge have security fencing and a controlled gate that enhance airport security and operating efficiency, including a security guard shelter at the gate. Construction staging and traffic control design allowed traffic to continue traveling Howell Avenue and another local roadway during construction. The bridge is wide enough and strong enough to handle the airport’s heaviest snowplowing and firefighting equipment. The roadway approaches to the bridge were constructed within mechanically stabilized earth retaining walls to decrease the construction footprint. The project’s bioretention swales, low-maintenance materials for the bridge, and retaining walls and roadway are its sustainable features.