CTH CE and Eisenhower Drive Roundabouts, Outagamie County, Wisconsin
Outagamie County and Town of Buchanan / Outagamie County, Wisconsin
Date Completed:
October 2015
Services:
Concrete Pavement, Earthwork & Grading, Underground Utilities
Design Engineer:
Omnni Associates
Construction Engineer:
Gremmer Associates
Award Won:
2016 / 27th Annual ACPA Excellence in Concrete Pavement Awards
Project Summary:
The intersection of CTH CE & Eisenhower Drive and the intersection of Eisenhower Drive and Van Roy Road receive multi-lane roundabouts to correct severe deficiencies at both intersections.
Contract Amount:
$3,012,000
Project Length:
0.65 miles
By the Numbers:
- 24,300 SY of 8-inch and 10-inch Concrete Pavement
- 21,500 CY of Excavation
- 26,000 SF of Concrete Sidewalk
- 14,000 LF of Concrete Curb and Gutter
- 2,650 LF of Storm Sewer
- 47 Drainage Structures
About the Project
CTH CE is an east-west major arterial corridor under the jurisdiction of Outagamie County that carries over 30,000 vehicles per day.
The project included construction of multi-lane roundabouts at both intersections. The construction was complicated by the tight urban corridor on Eisenhower Drive that forced roundabout construction into adjacent parking lots. Further complicating construction was the accelerated schedule and staging required to maximize access to over 50 area business that included Lowes, Festival Foods, several sit-down and fast food restaurants, specialty shops, and a movie theatre.
Vinton Construction was allotted a total of 80 working days to complete the project, and the contract special provisions included Saturdays as a charged working day. The plan required that construction be performed under 4 distinct stages, 3 of which were within the CTH CE/Eisenhower Drive Roundabout. In order to meet the demanding schedule in the tight urban environment, extraordinary equipment & forces and a constant stream of communication was required between Vinton and their 11 subcontractors. In addition, Vinton had the task of meeting weekly with the area businesses to communicate upcoming changes in work areas and access routes to the businesses. The effort put forth by Vinton and their subcontractors resulted in all 4 stages of the project construction being completed in less than 3 ½ months with a total of 78 charged working days.
Many construction headers and hand pours were required due to the project staging and varying pavement widths on the roundabout approach and exits. Additionally, the concrete joint layout through the roundabouts was very complicated. Quality of construction was never compromised and Vinton’s attention to detail resulted in a smooth ride across all headers and joints matching between stages.
The quality of the design, accuracy of the plans, carefully designed staging, and the extraordinary effort put forth by Vinton and their subcontractors without compromising construction quality were all instrumental in the successful project construction. With the completion of the project, traffic congestion and back-ups are a thing of the past. The new roundabouts are functioning exactly as planned. Travel through the CTH CE corridor and access to businesses on Eisenhower Drive has been vastly improved, and accident severity will be greatly reduced.
Noteworthy Project Details
- Roundabouts have become very common in Wisconsin. However, construction of 3-lane roundabouts like the one at County CE/Eisenhower Drive are a bit unique. The construction impact to the numerous area business was significant, so the project warranted an accelerated schedule. The project incorporated a unique staging plan along with an extremely aggressive 80 working day schedule for the project to maximize access and minimize the length of construction. In addition, Saturdays were defined as a charged working day. The schedule was reviewed by Wisconsin Concrete Pavement Association to assure it was attainable. Not one complaint was received about lack of progress during the project because there were multiple crews typically working 12 hour days 6 days a week to get the project completed within the allotted 80 working days.
- The main problem encountered on the project was providing enough space for multiple crews and operations to be taking place simultaneously. There was no room in the schedule for extra work. Fortunately, the plan was thorough and well-designed resulting in no design related change orders. The project demanded extremely good coordination and timing: Vinton has a reputation for good project management, and their approach to scheduling multiple crews and multiple operations was near perfect. The project was well designed and the construction personnel on site where seasoned and well organized which made for a smooth-running project from design through construction without any unique problems.