Graceful arches and rustications highlight the concrete piers of a 3,840-foot bridge being constructed over the Tolomato River in Vilano Beach, Fla., near St. Augustine. Because the $15.6 million bridge is located in a busy recreational area, the Florida Department of Transportation calls for the highly visible piers to be elegant as well as efficient. The piers feature soaring half-arches on the exterior, a cathedral arch between the columns, and rustication of the columns and portions of the cap.
Custom formwork facilitated the casting of the bridge piers. To create the reusable custom cap form, the form manufacturer horizontally split it into two halves that were stripped down and flown separately. The top half comprised the main body of the cap and included a small portion of the two exterior arches. The bottom half included the remainder of the exterior arches, the interior cathedral arch, and the rustication strips. The sides of these top and bottom halves were assembled from standard steel-faced panels ganged together. Because the all-steel forming system requires no walers, it is ideal for bridge pier caps. Crews found the forms easy to strip, fly, clean and reassemble.
