Crews dig deep to build bridge in N.Va.

The Purple Heart Bridge over the Occoquan River is being widened to catch up with years of traffic growth in Northern Virginia.

The bridge, built in the early 1990s, links Prince William and Fairfax counties and has long been known as a major bottleneck along Interstate 95.

The $123 million widening project will add a fourth lane to I-95 between Occoquan and Springfield, on both sides of the highway.

When completed, the new lanes are expected to alleviate traffic congestion along the 6-mile portion of the highway.

It is being constructed in three phases. The first two are the widening of the northbound and southbound sides of the highway in Fairfax County, and the third is the addition of the fourth lane on the bridge.

At a cost of $10 million, phase three will widen the bridge to eight lanes, 10 when you include the High Occupancy Vehicle lanes.

Virginia Department of Transportation project manager Charlie Warraich said 16 new shafts will have to be bored into the riverbed and 10 columns will be constructed to support the wider structure.

Work on the I-95 widening project started nearly two years ago, but the bridge work started in January. Crews were not permitted to begin working in water until July 1 because of environmental concerns.

But as drivers cross the bridge at speeds of 55 mph or more during normal traffic conditions, they can't see what's going on below the deck.

According to the design, Warraich said, 16 new holes, or drill shafts, will be bored into the riverbed to support the columns for the wider bridge.

The water near the river shore is relatively shallow at about 5 or 6 feet deep, but in the middle of the river where pleasure boaters frequent the channel, the water can be up to 50 feet deep underneath the bridge, Warraich said.

Once a hole is bored, a metal pipe is put in place and filled with concrete. The concrete rises to the water's surface.

Warraich said it can take nearly a month for the material to harden so it can support the weight of the bridge and the cars that travel across it.

Barker has a constant eye on the nearly 30 construction workers, from two separate contracting agencies, who work on the project. Much of his job is to ensure the safety of the men during their shifts. At a minimum, he makes sure that everyone working on the river is wearing a life vest in the event they fall into the water.

The work on the river is bound by strict time constraints, so many crews take advantage of what time they do have to get the job done to plan ahead of schedule, Warraich said.

On Feb. 15, crews will have to come out of the water and stay out for more than five months while fish in the river begin their mating season.

In the end, the expanded bridge has a final price tag of about $10 million -- $5 million allotted for each side.

At a total length of 865 feet, with two new lanes with a width of nearly 13 feet, about $3 million worth of concrete will go to pave the new road surface, Warraich said.

Steel beams worth $2 million, each about 150 feet long, will be spliced to span the entire length of the bridge starting next summer.

Phase one of the project could open sometime this year, with phase two opening in 2010. The bridge will not be completed until 2011.
Uriah A. Kiser is a staff writer for the News & Messenger of Woodbridge.