Knik Arm Crossing: essential infrastructure for Alaska.

• Author: Foster, Michael L.
• Position: SPECIAL SECTION: Building Alaska

Alaska's infrastructure shapes our lives--from where we work to where we make our homes. Alaska's infrastructure supports our communities-allowing industry and business to flourish, providing a means of commerce, and a way home. Former U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd said: "America's highways, roads, bridges, are an indispensable part of our lives. They link one end of our nation to the other. We use them each and every day, for every conceivable purpose."

Alaska's population is growing, but our infrastructure is not keeping pace. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, we are among the five fastest growing states in the nation. And the Alaska Department of Labor expects the area of the strongest growth to be the Anchorage and Mat-Su Borough region. However; despite our rapid growth, and more on the way, Alaska ranks 45 in the United States for public road miles. The Knik Arm Crossing will be an indispensable part of our lives--it is essential infrastructure that Alaskans need and it is ready to build.

Our design uses conventional construction methods--pipe pile substructure for the bridge piers utilizing a drilled shaft method. This type of foundation and technology is not new and, in fact, has been used in thousands of bridge projects locally, regionally and nationally.

Additionally, site conditions were considered and investigated. Extensive borings were taken along the bridge alignment to ensure that soil conditions can support the pipe pile foundation and bridge superstructure given the area's earthquakes, ice flows, tides and other...