In February 2020, epic rains washed out the Shackleburg Road Bridge in South Carolina’s Anderson County. The bridge was a key link for surrounding neighborhoods and a global business that designs and manufactures power tools and outdoor products.
Deploying a hybrid accelerated bridge construction approach, the Michael Baker team designed a 60-foot span cored slab bridge deck with steel pile supported end bents—a low maintenance, low-cost solution to prevent future washouts and allow for a 100-year service life. The Michael Baker team also employed a “context-sensitive” approach to right-of-way acquisitions and other potential impacts, modifying the design based on input from property owners.
Project initiation was held up by various factors, delaying project initiation until late 2020. Michael Baker’s rapid completion of the design enabled Anderson County, which undertook construction largely with its own crews, to launch construction in February 2021 and complete it less than four months later. In addition, design and construction costs were significantly under budget.
The development of the new bridge allowed residential and commercial growth to continue, while creating a large reservoir of goodwill for Anderson County.
When Anderson County held a May 26, 2021, ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the new structure, it unveiled the span’s new name — the Owen Farm Bridge. Doing so created widespread buy-in with the local community. Townspeople turned out in large numbers to help christen the bridge.