| OTIA III State Bridge Delivery |
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| Web Brief (Jun 06) |
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A solar powered signal regulates traffic on Oregon 58
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Solar power regulates traffic during construction
Two primary goals of the OTIA III State Bridge Delivery Program—maintain mobility and protect the environment—seemed destined to clash as work began on the Crescent Creek and Odell Creek bridges in Bundle 217 on Oregon 58. These picturesque bridges in Klamath County carry motorists and freight along a vital corridor between the Willamette Valley and south-central Oregon.
To keep the bridges open to traffic, the contractor, Wildish Standard Paving, works on half a bridge at a time and maintains a lane of alternating one-way traffic on the other half. Alternating traffic is typically controlled by a standard electric traffic signal, but at the Crescent Creek and Odell Creek bridges, installing the infrastructure for a signal would have damaged the surrounding roadway and wooded areas. Wildish would have had to tear out the bridge shoulders and approach and install poles carrying electric line approximately a half-mile into this environmentally sensitive area. The challenge was to maintain mobility without negatively impacting the environment.
Keeping ODOT’s Context Sensitive and Sustainable Solutions philosophy in mind, Wildish and ODOT collaborated to find a more sustainable alternative that was cost-effective and efficient as well as environmentally responsible.
The solution was a portable solar-powered traffic signal that not only reduced negative impacts on the environment and maintained mobility but also saved time and money. Solar panels generate electricity to maintain batteries that power the traffic signal, even on cloudy days. Once fully charged, the batteries can operate for up to 20 days without sunshine.
Wildish was so confident about the effectiveness and environmental friendliness of the traffic signal that it offered ODOT a price reduction of $10,000. This contractual incentive defrayed ODOT’s cost to review and approve the first solar-powered traffic signal ever used on a bridge program project.
By not using hard-wired electricity, the solar-powered traffic signal may actually be more reliable than a standard electric signal.
“The utility company that provides electricity along Oregon 58 experienced seven power outages in 2005, lasting from 50 minutes to 56 hours,” said Brent Pierson, resident construction manager on Bundle 217. “The potential for serious problems if traffic signals lose power is great, so solar power is a much more reliable option.”
The solar-powered traffic signals are expected to control one-way alternating traffic across the Crescent Creek and Odell Creek bridges until project completion in late October 2006.
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