A set of towering arches now cast shadows in downtown Miami, part of the support structures for a new Signature Bridge, a key component of the I-395/SR 836/I-95 Design-Build Project. The sprawling $818 million project is the product of a partnership between the Florida Department of Transportation ( FDOT) and the Greater Miami Expressway Agency and its contractor, the Archer Western – de Moya Group Joint Venture. In an email to Miami Today, Maria Rosa Higgins Fallon, public information director for FDOT’s District Six, reported that work on the project continues around the clock as crews make progress on all three project corridors. She wrote: “On I-95, completing three traffic shifts in mid-February has allowed the contractor to open new areas for construction. The work includes constructing the second lane on the southbound I-95 ramp to eastbound I-395, installing new traffic railings, and replacing concrete pavement on I-95 from Northwest Eighth Street to Northwest 17th Street.” The massive construction includes the Signature Bridge over Northeast Second Avenue and Biscayne Boulevard, an upper deck of traffic built over State Road 836 and the Miami River, and the addition of one lane to the northbound entrance to I-95. The overall goal is to add capacity, enhance the flow of traffic and safety, and improve access along I-395, SR 836 and I-95. “On State Road (SR) 836, progress continues with the construction of piers for the new double-deck roadway from Northwest 12th Avenue to I-95. Work is also advancing on installing caps and beams east of Northwest 17th Avenue, where crews are using the 488-foot gantry specially designed for this project,” wrote Ms. Fallon. Nightly lane closures are taking place on SR 836 between Northwest 12th Avenue and Northwest 17th Avenue to install the caps and beams over the roadway safely, she said. The project team is also working on the eastbound SR 836 double-decked ramp connection to southbound I-95. The total reconstruction of I-395 continues with work along the entire corridor, including the construction of the iconic six-arched Signature Bridge and the new higher-capacity mainline. “At the Signature Bridge site, crews have completed two of the six soaring arches and are currently erecting precast arch segments for the tallest arch, which will rise 330 feet in the air; 56 of the 86 precast arch segments have already been installed,” she wrote. Preparations are underway to begin the installation of arch segments for a fourth arch. Work on the foundations for the remaining two arches is ongoing, with a critical concrete pour for the foundation just west of Northeast Second Avenue completed on March 29. Ms. Fallon said it took 127 trucks, three concrete pumps, and about nine hours to finish the pour. A final and much larger pour for the foundation is to be completed this summer. Nighttime installation of the auger cast piles at the final arch foundation east of Biscayne Boulevard just north of I-395 has moved rapidly, with 78 of the 84 total piles completed. The piles for this foundation are being installed at a depth of about 135 feet each. Work on the new mainline includes constructing foundations, support piers, and installing precast roadway segments from Northeast First Avenue to I-95, she said. Currently, precast roadway segments are being erected over North Miami Avenue. This work necessitates overnight closures of North Miami Avenue between Northeast 13th Street and north of Northeast 11th Street to safely install the segments over the roadway. Work also continues on the new westbound I-395 ramp to southbound I-95, with crews recently completing a concrete pour for a section of the ramp. Additional deck concrete pours will be scheduled, requiring a full closure of all eastbound I-395 lanes at I-95. Total project completion remains targeted for late 2027. Details: www.I-395miami.com Related Posts:First of Signature Bridge arches is finishedSignature Bridge closes its first gapMassive signature bridge project builds to 2027 openingI-395 Signature Bridge taking shapeI-395 Signature Bridge project rises higherThe post Signature Bridge, double-deck highway roadbed advance appeared first on Miami Today. ...read more read less