Atlanta pedestrian bridges get FRP makeover

The investment included the rehabilitation of two pedestrian bridges servicing the Inman Park/Reynoldstown Station on the Blue and Green Line. The North/DeKalb Avenue entrance gives pedestrians safe passage over vehicle traffic while the South/Seaboard Avenue entrance ferries commuters across railroad tracks. In 2020, the two pedestrian overpasses received fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) facelifts with FiberSPAN composite bridge decking.

The FiberSPAN product replaced heavy, decaying concrete. The lightweight, zero maintenance FRP decks allowed contractors to use the original steel trusses, minimising the repair and labour costs associated with steel upgrades.

“Access to the work site was limited,” says Scott Reeve, marketing director for Composite Advantage, now part of the Creative Composites Group. “It was difficult to manoeuvre the FRP panels into place, but precast concrete would have been prohibitive. Aside from problems with ingress, it would have taken longer to pour concrete and caused additional disruption and downtime for the rail station.”

Composite Advantage prefabricated panels that were integrally moulded with curbs and crowns for water runoff to drainage scuppers with built-in 14 inch by 19.7 inch trenches. Design requirements included a live load of 90psf, a wind uplift loading of 30psf, and a minimum crushing strength of 150 psi. Both bridge decks meet an ASTM Class II flame-spread classification and can operate in a temperature range of -40°F to 160°F. Both decks also received an attractive, non-slip pedestrian grade polymer aggregate surface.

The North entrance pedestrian bridge deck consisted of 11 FRP panels with a total length of 138ft. The South entrance bridge deck, comprised of 33 panels, had a total length of 394ft and showcased some unique features such as 90° turns. Design flexibility, aesthetics, lightweight and life cycle longevity made FRP a robust choice for Inman Park MARTA station which recently re-opened to commuters and visitors.

www.compositeadvantage.com