A third-party design review of the under-construction Houston Ship Channel bridge project indicates numerous areas of concern, according to a报告released by the Harris County (Texas) Toll Road Authority (HCTRA).
In January, the authority had halted construction of the $962-million bridge—designed by FIGG Bridge Engineers—after an initial review uncovered an issue related to design of the curved portions of the main pylons’ legs on the bridge’s cable-stayed segment.
根据HCCTRE执行董事彼得W.关键的一封信，Cowi North America的审查发现了21个“重大关注的”区域“重大关注”的函件。根据该报告，Cowi发现了在施工期间使用的风装，而在服务期间进行“不可靠”，建议多个变化。
桥的弯曲腿部区域仍然是一个问题，因为Cowi发现他们“没有所需的能力”。
报告所识别的另一个问题是，“[南南行]结构的交通负荷尚未在承包商分析中尚未考虑[北行]结构勃起。”
与桥梁的设计有关的结果包括：堆积岩土工能力，这些能力被发现“不符合任何基础的项目要求”和“Pylon桩帽结构能力[该]不符合力量的项目要求。”
HCTRA于3月10日向哈里斯县委员委员会提出了Cowi的报告。在会议期间，Adrian Garcia县委员会询问是否会发现这些问题，而不会带入独立的第三方公司。钥匙，谁是代表HCTRA回答问题，说：“可能不是”。
建议委员会授权Figg和Cowi共同努力解决这些问题。FOGG的陈述表示该公司对报告并不感到惊讶。
“评论在桥梁工程专业中很常见，这是两家公司的工程分析典型，以具有差异，”陈述读。“这是完全预计会对地址有一些评论。Figg期待着这个过程的下一阶段，设计团队的所有工程公司将能够合作审查任何评论。“
HCTRA noted in a March 11 statement that the construction pause initiated in January will "continue indefinitely in order to allow the engineer of record (FIGG) and the independent consultant (COWI) an opportunity to work jointly."
"Projects of that critical nature demand the utmost in safety. I've now been at the county a long time. I've never seen the county be callous or cavalier towards projects. Safety's always in people's minds," Key told county commissioners. "But this project is unique with regards to the critical nature of the project itself, where it sits and the dollar values associated with it. So it was absolutely appropriate to do this report."
HCTRA plans to update county commissioners "as soon as practical” regarding timing and costs.
