Chatham Bridge Rehabilitation and Replacement Project Named “Overall Winner” in the VTCA Transportation Engineering Awards

Company News | September 28, 2022

A. Morton Thomas and Associates, Inc. (AMT) was honored recently, along with Whitman, Requardt & Associates, LLP (WRA), with the selection of Chatham Bridge Rehabilitation and Replacement Project as the “Overall Winner” in the 2022 Virginia Transportation Construction Alliance (VTCA) Transportation Engineering Awards program. A panel of judges announced the recognition for this VDOT project at the VTCA-VDOT Consultant Forum. AMT provided Construction Engineering Inspection on the Chatham Bridge.

“The $23.4 million Design-Build project used modern construction techniques, context sensitive solutions, and public outreach to extend the service life and provide long-term low maintenance of this bridge while reopening to traffic 41 days ahead of schedule,” said Michael Wiercinski, AMT President.

With WRA as the designer and J.B. Fay as the contractor, the Chatham Bridge included major rehabilitation of the bridge structure to include a superstructure replacement that was wider than the current conditions and improved mobility, concrete substructure surface repairs with partial substructure reconstruction, and protection of the substructure using embedded galvanic anodes and an activated arch sprayed zinc system on the piers located below the existing joints. It also used context sensitive solutions, including evaluation of construction techniques to account for working in and adjacent to the river with associated time of year restrictions for endangered species, working within limited right-of-way, protecting the Old Stone Warehouse (OSW) and inclusion of a barrier separated shared use path to connect the city and county.

The Chatham Bridge, located in downtown Fredericksburg, VA and carrying Route 3 over the Rappahannock River between the City of Fredericksburg and Stafford County, has been the historical crossing in Downtown Fredericksburg since the 1790’s. The structure modifications maintained the aesthetics with pier extensions that complemented the original piers with a modern bridge railing mimicking the original 1941 railing. The new structure incorporates a 10-foot-wide path for pedestrians and bicyclists including a scenic overlook of the Rappahannock River and connecting sidewalks in downtown Fredericksburg with the Belmont-Ferry Farm Trail in Stafford. The Chatham Bridge now carries vehicles of all legal loads daily.