Blythe Construction teams achieved a major milestone on the I-485 Express Lanes project, with the demolition of two former bridges over Westinghouse Blvd in southern Mecklenburg County, NC.

In coordination with NCDOT, the project team closed Westinghouse Blvd to traffic for the entire weekend starting Friday, December 10th to complete demolition before the following Monday a.m. commute. 28 Blythe Construction team members worked round the clock in two shifts, removing a total of 12,500 square feet of bridge deck, as well as all footers, piers, end bents and caps.

The demolition required substantial planning and coordination from the project team, starting many months earlier with utility re-locations. In November, traffic on I-485 was shifted onto the new replacement bridges allowing for the direct connection ramps to Westinghouse Blvd to be built and clearing the way for demolition and removal of the old structures. Teams placed 1ft of protective millings on the roadway directly under the bridge, then set about disassembling the structure.

To complete the demolition within the allotted time window, project teams ran a fleet of equipment including six hammer-hoes, an excavator rigged with metal/concrete sheers, three track-hoes with thumb attachments, and a track-hoe with a magnet attachment to help expedite the processing of the rebar removal. Ten dumpsters were utilized and continuously hauled away all metal to the recycling facility, and two off-road trucks were also used to efficiently clear the rubbilized debris from Westinghouse Blvd. All concrete was cleaned of rebar and processed to a size suitable and hauled off for structural fill.

The demolition completes a key phase in the overall I-485 Express Lanes project. Congratulations to all team members involved on this beautifully executed operation.