Delta Construction Company of Eugene has been selected as the contractor on a project to address landslide activity and damage to the Sheep Creek Bridge on Highway 20 (Santiam Highway) at milepost 56.6, approximately 25 miles east of Sweet Home.
Delta was awarded the low-bid contract of approximately $770,000 for Phase 1 construction. That phase will be primarily landslide mitigation. Beginning in August and continuing through November, 2015, the contractor will construct a row of 17 underground piles, reaching 50 feet below the ground surface uphill of the eastern end of the bridge. The piles will consist of 33-inch-wide steel piles embedded vertically in 4-foot-diameter cylinders of concrete. This row of piles, similar to a buried picket fence, is designed to re-direct the landslide away from the bridge.
Construction activity is scheduled to begin in early August, with the placement of temporary roadwork signs. The contractor is currently scheduled to mobilize equipment during the week of Aug. 16, and begin drilling and placing pile the following week.
Once mobilization begins, travelers on US 20 should plan for delays of up to 45 minutes. The movement and placement of the long, steel piles is a slow process to be done in a constricted geographical area, creating longer than usual delays, according to the Oregon Department of Transportation.
Longer delays may occur a couple of days per week, but until the contractor has time to experience the construction sequence, travelers are advised to plan for lengthy delays between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Message boards on the highway and TripCheck will provide advance notification of when longer delays are occurring.
ODOT officials say they are working closely with other agencies, including emergency responders, in the event that an emergency priority passage is needed through the work zone.
The second phase of the project, to be constructed in summer 2016 is currently in development, with final design expected in early 2016. Phase 2 will repair slide damage to the bridge, and reset the bridge on the eastern abutment.
During Phase 2 construction, there will be a need for a complete highway closure while the bridge end is replaced. Once a design is complete and a contractor is on-board, there will be more information about the timing of the closure.
To learn more about the project, visit http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/REGION2/Pages/US-20-Sheep-Creek-Bridge-Phases-1-and-2–.aspx.