SR 589 (Veterans Expressway)

The SR 589 (Veterans Expressway) was a $380 million project located in Hillsborough County, Florida. The previous roadway was not meeting the capacity demands of frequent commuters. As a result, the structures needed to be updated to provide enough width for additional travel lanes. 

DRMP was responsible for the structural and roadway improvements which involved widening a 2.5-mile stretch of limited access all electronic tolling (AET) facility with express lanes from a 4-lane to an 8-lane section from Memorial Highway to north of Barry Road.  DRMP’s structural engineering components include:  a Bridge Development Report and structural design and plans production for the widening of two bridge sites (a 2-span continuous steel plate girder bridge and a 3-span AASHTO beam bridge to be widened using the new Florida I-Beam 36).  The substructure components of the bridge are founded on 18-inch PPC piles at the end bents and the piers.  The project also included the analysis of existing overhead sign span trusses, an existing monotube analysis, proposed cantilever signs, proposed span truss signs, bridge mounted signs, box culvert extensions and numerous MSE and sheet pile wall designs. FAA coordination was also key to the project.

The new limited access highway benefits the community by adding one general use lane and one express toll lane in each direction. The express lane allows for willing motorists to bypass traffic congestion by paying an additional toll which will decrease travel time and increase the Turnpike Enterprise’s revenue. The widened existing structures will provide a smooth traffic flow that will meet the growing capacity demands of the highway.