Construction Challenges of the Port Everglades Bypass Road on Highly Compressible Soils in Broward County, Florida-Paper

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The Port Everglades Bypass Road in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, includes a 1,317-foot elevated bridge designed to reduce traffic congestion near US-1 and SE 17th Street. Construction was complicated by highly compressible organic silt and peat, numerous underground utilities and petroleum pipelines, and the potential for settlement and downdrag. Removing or improving the weak soils beneath conventional approach embankments was impractical, while construction vibrations had to be minimized.<br /><br />The project used auger-cast piles (ACPs), selected for their low vibration, rapid installation, and ability to develop substantial side resistance in local limestone. Twenty-four-inch piles support the bridge end bents, and 36-inch piles support the piers. Because standard design correlations did not fully represent the site conditions, the team developed a project-specific relationship between corrected Standard Penetration Test (SPT) values and pile side resistance, guided by Florida Department of Transportation methods. Design also accounted for downdrag from new roadway fills.<br /><br />Three instrumented, bidirectional static load tests validated the pile design and showed that measured capacities exceeded predictions. Thermal Integrity Profiling identified temperature and pile-diameter concerns in demonstration piles; the contractor adjusted the grout mix and accounted for reduced tip-zone capacity in production pile design. Dynamic proof testing at each pier and end bent confirmed required capacities, structural integrity, and low displacement.<br /><br />The results support the use of the site-specific design approach for properly installed ACPs socketed into the Fort Thompson limestone. Production piles were verified through installation records, grout testing, integrity profiling, and proof tests.

Keywords

Port Everglades Bypass Road

Fort Lauderdale

elevated bridge

auger-cast piles

ACPs

Fort Thompson limestone

SPT values

static load tests

thermal integrity profiling

downdrag