Selected by the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) LaPorte District, Primera provided construction engineering and inspection services for the State Road 249 Bridge project, This project involved constructing a new bridge and widening the existing one over US-12, the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) rail line, Norfolk Southern (NS) Railroad, and Boundary Road, within the Norfolk Southern Rail Yard.

The construction required coordination with NS Main Track, NS Yard, and NICTD railroads, and featured multiple utility relocations. Active vibration monitoring was necessary during piling and cofferdam installations. The two 1,100-foot bridges required mass pour concrete footers and pier caps with thermal control, pipe and H-pile, steel plate girders, and bulb-T beams.

The completion of the 1,200-foot structure marked a significant milestone in this multi-year project aimed at increasing capacity on the only public roadway linking the Ports of Indiana-Burns Harbor with the Greater Chicago/Northern Indiana area. The new bridge doubles the ocean cargo capacity for Indiana’s Lake Michigan port, providing a crucial piece of infrastructure that supports future growth for the port and Indiana’s economy.

Photography courtesy of Ports of Indiana.