This session will relay some of the challenges and solutions implemented in navigating one of District 2’s new alignment projects through design and construction.  The US 301 Baldwin bypass in Duval County was first considered in 1960 as a US 301 improvement to provide an alternate route to avoid congestion within the Town of Baldwin. Two rail lines cross US 301 in Baldwin and were the most significant cause of traffic congestion - a north-south line (30 crossings/day) and an east-west line (45 crossings/day). Following a lengthy PD&E phase that considered three alternatives, a preferred alignment was selected and the Design phase began in Aug 2012 with the Project Management team consisting of Jeff Daugharty as FDOT/D2 Design PM and, on the Consultant Design side, Keith Travis as Parsons Transportation PM. The Construction Phase kicked off in January 2017 and finished in 2021 – the Construction team was led by FDOT Construction PM Robert Gurganious and a CEI team with Keith & Schnars as the prime consultant.

The project team encountered many interesting challenges in designing the 4.3 mile LA new alignment to clear the way for construction of the 4-lane divided roadway that includes a pair of bridges over each railway requiring extensive coordination with CSX including accommodations for future rail widening, and a third pair over the Jacksonville-Baldwin Rail Trial facility. Bridges over US90 were initially considered but coordination with SHIPO concluded that an at grade crossing was necessary to preserve the scenic highway viewshed. In addition, approaches to the US90 intersection consist of concrete pavement to better endure stop and go truck traffic at the signalized intersection.  The new alignment also crossed an area of contamination that required coordination with FDEP to clean up the area before construction started. The D2 CAR contractor removed the contaminated material during the design phase, and installed temporary drainage that was carefully replaced during the construction phase as the permanent drainage system came online.

As an introduction to the Quality Panel discussion, an opening presentation will cover an evaluation of issues FDOT District 7 is having that may be related to quality, what may be causing these issues, and some potential solutions to improve quality. The goal of the presentation is to help attendees understand quality control principles, and to stimulate the attendees to think about how they can contribute to producing higher quality plans, whether it is improvements within the consultant quality process, improvements in FDOT’s communication and management process, or any other change that may lead to higher quality plans.