McDonald Road over Otter Creek
The original McDonald Road Bridge was built in 1923, with a clear width of only 24 feet. Pedestrians and bicyclists crossing the bridge were forced to wait for a break in traffic to cross the bridge, and often utilized the steep roadway embankment to access the Mid-County Trail along the east side of Otter Creek. The Village applied for and received federal STP-Bridge funding assistance for the bridge, which was classified as Functionally Obsolete due to its narrow width. Baxter & Woodman provided Phase I and Phase II design and Phase III construction engineering services for the replacement of the single span structure.
The new bridge included a pedestrian underpass, thereby completing the north-south connection of the Mid-County trail in a safe location under the roadway. Stairways were added at the east end of the bridge to connect the bridge directly to the trail.
The new structure consists of an 88-foot single span, precast, prestressed concrete girder bridge, which was only the second use of IDOT’s new PPC-IL beam shapes. A Reinforced Soil Slope (RSS) system was utilized along the east roadway approach, with a pre-vegetated mat covering the RSS (first use of this combination in Illinois). Other improvements included underpass lighting, two multi-use trail routes (at grade and below the new structure), compensatory storage basins, wetland mitigation, roadway improvements, and guardrail improvements. The bridge was also designed for future expansion to a wider cross section to handle increased traffic capacity.
ASCE IL Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement