PROJECT: SIDNEY LANIER BRIDGE
LOCATION: New Brunswick, Georgia
TYPE OF PROJECT: Bridges: Long Span
SERVICE(S) PROVIDED: Design
OWNER: Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT)
COMPLETION: 2003
CONSTRUCTION COST: $65.5 million

Description:
T.Y. Lin International performed the concrete alternative design and provided construction support services for this 2,500-foot-long cable-stayed bridge across the Brunswick River in the State of Georgia. As a replacement for a lift-span structure that opened in 1956, the new Sidney Lanier Bridge acknowledges increased shipping access to the Port of Brunswick due to the size of the structure. Also, the existing 43-year-old bridge was declared a hazard to navigation.

The new bridge is 7,780 feet in total length. The cable-stayed bridge consists of two 625-foot side spans and a 1,250-foot main span. The width of the bridge is 71 feet between curbs. The navigation channel has a minimum horizontal clearance of 400 feet and a vertical clearance of 185 feet, whereas the minimum clearance between pier protection islands is 1,040 feet. Supported by 176 stay cables, the main span is anchored into twin pylons rising 480 feet above the surface of the river. Additionally, approach spans measuring 180 feet in length lead up to the cable-stayed bridge. The spans are comprised of precast concrete post-tensioned girder with conventional cast-in-place decks. The span layout successfully addressed concerns regarding hazards to navigation of the existing lift span.

The superstructure of the bridge consists of an 11-inch-thick concrete slab supported by 5 feet by 4.5 feet concrete longitudinal girder at each edge and by intermediate transverse girders spaced at 27 feet 8 inches. Vehicular traffic travels on this four-lane superstructure that is designed to have an overall width of just short of 80 feet. The bridge’s support system has two concrete pylons and two concrete anchor piers. At pylon piers, the superstructure is free to move in the longitudinal direction and restrained in the vertical and transverse directions. The concrete deck is cast monolithically with the two anchor piers. Each concrete pylon carries two planes of fan-shaped cables anchored to the edge girders.