WORLD'S LARGEST FLOATING BRIDGE A LOGISTICAL HURDLE

摘要

Building the world's largest anything is always tricky enough, but doing it on water adds a wrinkle that is always bobbing in the current. Dave Becher, Washington State Dept. of Transportation floating-bridge and landings project director, is overseeing construction of the world's longest floating bridge-on Lake Washington, in Seattle-and managing all the logistical challenges that marine construction offers. Requiring the coordination of a half-dozen stakeholder agencies and scheduled to open this spring as part of a $4.56-billion undertaking, the project is replacing the world's current longest floating bridge with one slightly longer, at 7,710 ft. Becher is managing equipment movements through locks and across the lake as well as the construction of the new floating concrete-pontoon base, with a 20-ft elevated roadway intended to provide traffic safety and maintenance benefits.