Maumee River Crossing Project Uses Education
to Build Engineers of the Future
Michael Siffer, ASHE NW Ohio Secretary
The Maumee River Crossing represents the largest, most expensive
single project undertaken in the history of the Ohio Department
of Transportation (ODOT). Fru-Con Construction Corporation,
of Baldwin, Missouri, has been awarded the contract. Fru-Con
Constructions bid was $219,996,000. The new crossing,
when complete in fall of 2005, will carry six lanes of traffic
on I-280 over the Maumee River, with Interstate reconstruction
extending 3.8 miles through East and North Toledo, Ohio. The
surface of the roadway will reach about 130 feet high near the
center of the river. The new bridge replaces a lift span that
results in regular traffic delays during the shipping season.
Citizens in northwest Ohio are working with ODOT, a Project
Management Consultant (PMC) team led by HNTB Corporation, and
the Maumee River Crossing Task Force (MRCTF) to design and construct
a new cable-stayed bridge structure and its accompanying roadway
approaches.
In keeping with this commitment, ODOT, the MRCTF, and Project
Management Consultant have implemented an extensive community
outreach program. The Education Committee of the MRCTF leads
part of this outreach. State Senator Linda Furney and Theresa
Morris, staff assistant for Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur and board
member of the Toledo Youth Commission, chair the committee.
This committee consists of working groups focused on educating
the community, young and old, about the project.
The Teacher Resources Working Group, in cooperation with the
Arts Commission of Greater Toledo, has created the Discovering
Bridges loan box program for junior high school teachers.
This collection of resources was put together to inspire the
youth of our community by challenging their curiosity and imagination
about the bridge being built. Contents of the loan boxes include
reference materials that cover traditional curriculum subjects
such as poetry, art, science, math and history. Cross-disciplinary
activities are included to put students in the roles of people
that work on the project. The activities are a great lesson
of responsibility for the up and coming engineers. The loan
boxes are also full of visuals, including models, maps, videos,
books, posters and much more. Representatives of ODOT and the
MRCTF introduced the boxes at a free introductory workshop on
August 2002 at the Main Library in Downtown Toledo. The boxes
are available at various locations around the community including
the Toledo Museum of Art, the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library
and WGTE, Toledos public broadcasting station. The program
has been very successful with loan boxes put to use in schools
all over Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan.
The Job Shadowing Working Group has founded a group known as
Bridge Blazers. The Bridge Blazers are responsible
for developing and implementing a program to teach high school
students about bridge construction and build awareness of related
careers in engineering and the construction trades. The nine-session
program was implemented for the 2002-2003 school year. Various
labor unions and professional organizations were involved in
the program. Each session consisted of a field trip and related
hands-on activities. The inaugural 2002-2003 program concluded
with an awards banquet on May 3. How did the students enjoy
the program? The fact that they all signed on for a second year
says it all!
In addition to the work of the MRCTF, ODOT staff, in cooperation
with Fru-Con, makes themselves available for presentations and
project tours on an almost daily basis for groups interested
in the project. General public tours are given on the first
and third Fridays of every month. Interested parties can tour
the field office, casting yard, cofferdam, drilled shaft and
pier work areas of the project. The tours begin with a brief
update and safety presentation at the field office and take
about 2 - 2 1/2 hours. Each tour is geared as necessary for
each audience.
Presentations have been made to numerous community groups both
at the project site and around Toledo. The sessions consist
of a general update on the project and individual sessions on
Community Involvement, Aesthetics, Construction and Forces and
Materials, depending on the interests of the group.
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