INSPECTION REPORT RED FLAG

Routine NYDOT inspections redflagged a large 84-inch culvert which channels Dugway Brook under Route 30 near the town of Duane, Franklin County in central New York State, roughly 3 hours north of Albany. Inspections revealed severe deterioration in the CMP steel culvert’s 210-foot span, with numerous holes, heavy rust, and near complete failure of the culvert floor. Buckling of the crown was evident directly under the travel lanes, raising concerns the culvert was in danger of collapse.

Closing this major state highway which threads north-south through the Adirondacks to excavate the culvert was out of the question, so planning began investigating repair or replacement options. It was quickly determined that the best approach was to replace the existing culvert and install a new culvert parallel and to the immediate north. Given the steep slope and need to keep the roadway open, there was no option to do this other than using trenchless methods.

Design work on the culvert replacement was expedited and the project was let out to bid in June 2022. Local heavy civil contractor Friend Commercial Contracting in nearby Malone NY was awarded the job and subcontracted the trenchless portion of the work with ECI (Engineers Construction Inc.), based in Williston, Vermont. ECI has a well-deserved reputation for completing complex technical projects under all kinds of challenging conditions on very time limited schedules. They had done several projects with Friend Commercial Contracting before, were on very good terms and familiar. ECI was well positioned, poised and well equipped to take on this job, and get it done quickly.