Florida DOT to Build New FIU Pedestrian Bridge 6 Years After Fatal Collapse
Florida DOT will design and build the $38 million 8th Street bridge in Sweetwater and expects to finish it in two years.
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A new pedestrian bridge is going up at Florida International University six years after a bridge under construction there collapsed killing six people.
Over 5,000 FIU students live in Sweetwater across from the main campus. The new bridge will connect the campus to a nearby neighborhood.
Florida DOT will design and build the $38 million 8th Street bridge and expects to finish it in two years. The project is funded by federal and state governments.
Traffic will be rerouted onto campus to accommodate temporary street closures during overnight construction, which will take place in phases.
“At FDOT, we are very focused on the completion of this project and making sure that we are maintaining a safe work environment for everyone,” said Jeff Baquedano on behalf of the FDOT. “Safety is our number one priority.”
The previous bridge collapsed during its construction in March 2018. Six people, including an FIU student, were killed in the collapse and several were injured.
An OSHA report later stated faulty engineering led to the collapse and that the project’s structural engineer, FIGG Bridge Engineers, should have shut down the street after cracks grew in the structure. The National Transportation Safety Board also said the road below the bridge should have been closed when tension tests were conducted after truss cracks were discovered.
The FDOT project manager for constructing the new bridge will be Carmen Bermudez, P.E., and the consultant design project engineer will be Kathy Lajo, P.E. with BCC Engineering.
FDOT lists the following work to be completed
- Installing a pedestrian bridge over SW 8th Street and the C-4 Canal, west of SW 109th Avenue
- Providing pedestrian plazas with elevators and stairs on the north-end and south-end landings of the pedestrian bridge
- Installing a signalized east/west crosswalk along SW 109th Avenue, north of SW 7 Terrace
- Upgrading pedestrian signals, signs and curb ramps
- Closing existing historical bridge over the C-4 Canal east of SW 109th Avenue
- Eliminating north/south crosswalks at the SW 8th Street and SW 109th Avenue intersection
- Removing remaining portions of existing structure in conflict with proposed improvements
