Lessons Learned: How the Construction Process for the New FIU Bridge Will Differ From Last Time

When the Florida International University (FIU) pedestrian bridge collapsed over SW Eighth Street four years ago, killing six motorists, many stunned observers wondered: Why wasn't the road closed while the bridge was being constructed?

After the National Transportation Safety Board investigated the collapse, they determined that the parties involved in the bridge's construction — including FIU; the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT); Munilla Construction Management, the builder overseeing the project; FIGG Bridge Group, the construction company hired to design the bridge; and Bolton Perez, the firm hired to review the bridge design — should have closed SW Eighth Street when they noticed structural issues with the bridge but didn't.

According to documents obtained by New Times via a public records request, the local engineering firm hired to design the new pedestrian bridge, BCC Engineering, outlines plans to do things differently this time around. One major change from their predecessors' project: diverting traffic throughout the construction process.

"I am very glad that they will close the road — otherwise another tragedy could happen," Orlando Duran, the father of 18-year-old FIU student Alexa Duran, who died in the collapse in 2018, tells New Times.

FDOT contracted BCC Engineering to design the new bridge and consult on all aspects of its construction. In a visual presentation and technical proposal from BCC (attached at the end of this story), the firm boasts of a project team made up largely of FIU alumni and a portfolio of pedestrian bridge projects including the U.S. 1 University Station pedestrian bridge at the University of Miami.

The firm presented its plans for traffic diversion during the construction of the bridge, opting to split the construction into stages and alternate nightly closures of the eastbound and westbound lanes during the initial stages. During the final stages, Tamiami Trail will be completely closed to traffic at the construction site and drivers will be detoured to SW 107th Avenue, SW 24th Street, and SW 117th Avenue.

The presentation includes mockup renderings of the bridge showing plazas on FIU's campus and in the City of Sweetwater at SW 109th Avenue. FDOT clarifies that the images are preliminary renderings and do not reflect the final design, which will be created in coordination with FIU, Sweetwater, and BCC Engineering. (The technical proposal and presentation do call for plazas at either end of the structure with elevators and bike ramps.)

Considering the public outcry and considerable scrutiny after the bridge collapse, the firm intends to be particularly cautious with its messaging and communications about the project. Reached by New Times via email last month, Daniel Raymat, director of structures at BCC Engineering, confirmed that BCC is designing the bridge but directed further questioning to FDOT. The firm's technical proposal alludes to the previous strategy and how it intends to handle media and public questioning.

"Given the project’s unique history, substantial public/media attention will be drawn to the project from design inception to construction completion," the proposal states. "Constant monitoring of optics [will be required] to ensure a clear and concise message is always delivered to the public."

The firm also noted that assuaging public concerns for safety will be critical for the new project.

"BCC will assure compliance with the new safety requirements, as recommended by the National Transportation Safety Board. Design Simplicity will alleviate any public concerns that the bridge is safe for use," the proposal reads.

In particular, the proposal mentions using "tried and true" structure types and does not call for Accelerated Bridge Construction (ABC) — an innovative technology employed in the first bridge project and in 25 percent of the country's bridge and highway repair and replacement projects. It's praised for limiting road closures and being quicker and more cost-effective than traditional methods. But ABC came under scrutiny following the FIU bridge collapse.

With the tragic failure of the previous bridge, it's easy to forget that the purpose behind both pedestrian bridge projects is to make it safer for students to cross SW Eighth Street. In 2017, a year before the original bridge was constructed, FIU student Alexis Dale was struck and killed while trying to cross the busy roadway at SW 109th Avenue. In March of 2020, a student on a bicycle was hit by a car while trying to cross the same intersection.

BCC Engineering will be paid an estimated $2,740,984.46 for its work on the bridge design, according to an FDOT spokesperson. The total budget for the construction is capped at $14,909,067, funded by a combination of state and local sources, as well as a TIGER grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. FIU and the City of Sweetwater are expected to contribute a combined $9,125,364.

The firm is slated to submit its final designs with necessary permitting to FDOT by December of this year, according to the timeline set out in the technical proposal.