Design Changes Made to Dry Fork Road Bridge Rehab Project

The plan will balance the construction schedule, and reduce the number of days the road will be closed.

Shutterstock photo.

(Harrison, Oh.) - Despite some unforeseen delays in material delivery that would affect the overall timeline for the Interstate 74/Dry Fork Road bridge rehabilitation, the Ohio Department of Transportation, the City of Harrison and their contractors have developed a plan that will not only balance the construction schedule, but will reduce the number of days Dry Fork Road will be closed.

Following award of the construction contract to the Eagle Bridge Company, the contractor placed orders for the required bridge beams. However, the beam delivery timing did not align with the original project schedule due to production runs by the manufacturer. As a result, the delivery will occur later than anticipated, impacting the originally planned schedule to close Dry Fork Road earlier in the project.

After identifying the delivery delay, representatives from ODOT, Eagle Bridge, the city of Harrison, and TEC Engineering - the design consultant for the project - met to evaluate options with two priorities: complete the project as efficiently as possible and limit impacts to the Harrison community.

To accomplish these goals, it was decided to pursue a redesign of the piers that will allow the contractors to continue working while waiting for the beams to be fabricated and delivered. Doing so will keep the project moving forward and reduce the duration of the closure of Dry Fork Road from 180 to 150 days.

By shifting major construction activity into later in the year, Dry Fork Road is now anticipated to be closed in early to mid-July, and the closure will be in place until early or mid-December, depending on the date of closure.

The interchange ramps will also be subject to closure at various times while Dry Fork Road is closed, but these closures will not be concurrent. Although a schedule has yet to be outlined, the westbound I-74 exit and entrance ramps will be closed first for up to 45 days, and once the reconstruction work is completed, the I-74 eastbound on and off ramps at Dry Fork Road will be closed for 45 days. 

The Dry Fork Road project includes widening the bridge over I-74 to add turn lanes at the I-74 on-ramps; constructing a sidewalk along the bridge; widening the westbound I-74 off-ramp; and rebuilding the traffic signals at the ramps.

The Eagle Bridge Company was awarded a contract in the amount of $8.25 million to complete the project, and all work is scheduled to be completed in November 2026.