I-70 bridge accident in Columbus (EB bridge being rebuilt)

[6a]

**Edit 7/3: Both directions are OPEN using the WB bridge.**

This morning a tanker carrying 8,000 gallons of ethanol overturned on the ramp from SB 270 to EB 70, directly under the 70 mainline bridge. It burned for about an hour before fire crews could get it extinguished.  I say it looks to be a long term closure because this is not what you want to see if you work for the DOT:



According to local media,

I-70 eastbound and westbound lanes remain closed between Hilliard Rome and Wilson Roads. I-270 has reopened, but ramps remain closed at the I-70 interchange.

10TV has confirmed the intense heat from the fire has caused structural damage, including exposed rebar, to the bridge directly above the flames on I-70.  Temperatures within the blaze reached 1,500 degrees.

Once the Environmental Protection Agency finishes its probe into the hazardous materials spill, the Ohio Department of Transportation will begin an inspection on the bridge.

Crews hope to have I-70 westbound open by the end of the day.  However, its unclear when I-70 eastbound lanes will reopen.  Early estimates indicate lanes could be closed for up to several weeks.

As of right now the following are closed:

- I-70 between Hilliard Rome and Wilson, although WB traffic can exit to 270 North, and EB traffic can exit to 270 South.

- SB 270 ramp to 70 EB

- WB 70 to SB 270

As I type this, they are working to shift EB lanes to the WB side, possibly by Friday.

The driver was charged with failure to control and transporting hazardous materials inside 270.

[6a]

I'll give ODOT this, they've done a hell of a job communicating today. I got an email just about every hour with updates today. Latest news:

WHAT'S NEW:

Two lanes of I-70 west at I-270 on the West Side will be open sometime tonight.

By Friday at noon, there will be two lanes for both I-70 eastbound and westbound traffic.

Between now and Friday, crews will build a cross-over through the median so that I-70 eastbound and westbound is travelling on the westbound side.

Just beyond Hilliard-Rome Road, I-70 eastbound travelers will be forced to cross over onto the westbound side using two lanes. They will travel over I-270 and cross back over just before Wilson Road.

The tanker fire early Wednesday morning caused so much damage to the I-70 eastbound bridge, it is not safe for the motoring public.

Construction is expected to start soon to replace a quarter of the bridge that was damaged.

It's believed that the fiery crash caused an estimated $1 million worth of damage.

ODOT will give the contractor 30 days to replace a section of the bridge and make the necessary pavement repairs. During the 30-day construction, the following ramps will be closed:

·         I-70 east to I-270 north
·         I-270 north to I-70 west

There is a financial incentive for the contractor to complete the work in less than 30 days.

Alternate routes are available on the ODOT website and social media sites.

ODOT Statement attributable to Director Jerry Wray:

"As we manage the situation on Interstate 70 safety, as always, is ODOT's top priority.  We have a team of bridge and pavement experts on-site to inspect the bridge.  Once the extent of damage is known, we will work to re-open the highway as quickly and as safely possible.  In the meantime, we are working with the State Highway Patrol and Columbus Police to keep traffic flowing around Columbus as this incident continues to impact areas beyond the immediate crash scene.  As more information is available we will communicate updates.  Please visit OHGO.com for real-time traffic conditions."

TIMELINE

6:00 AM — Vehicle fire reported
6:30 AM — ODOT on scene
7:00 AM — I-70 EB/WB at  I-270 shut down
7:15 AM — I-270 NB/SB at I-70 shut down
7:30 AM — I-270 NB/SB mainline open, ramps still closed
9:15 AM — ODOT inspectors/engineers on scene
12:15 PM — ODOT Director Wray briefed the media
1:30 PM — ODOT physically inspecting the bridge to determine extent of damage
3:00 PM — ODOT briefed area contractors
4:30 PM — Media briefing on construction timeline

[DeaconG]

Ouch ouch ouch.

Having major flashbacks to the tanker accident on FL 528 at FL 3 on Merritt Island.

They said they'd fix it in a month, and by God they did; so I don't doubt ODOT will get it done.

[cl94]

From what I can tell, the entire thing needs to be replaced. I've been following it since it happened this morning. Per District 6, EB-SB ramp was restriped for 2 lanes. Their Facebook page has a bunch of info.

[Purgatory On Wheels]

Great video here of the fire under the overpass...still open at the time.  Hard to tell what the oncoming traffic could have seen, but I'm pretty sure I would have bailed before trying to cross that inferno.

[6a]

Woof.



Anyway, it looks like things are on pace to get the crossover done by noon tomorrow. Two, 11-foot lanes each direction, 45 MPH speed limit through the site.

[vtk]

Apparently repair work is to start tomorrow morning. It sounds to me like they're only repairing the span over the SB-EB ramp, possibly keeping the WB-SB ramp open during the process.

I wonder if they could reopen one lane of the SB-EB ramp by shifting it over to the pavement of the WB-SB ramp to pass under I-70... EDIT probably not, as they're doing this on SB 270:

[6a]

I went EB right after the crossover opened. It really is amazing how much is involved in these things. New drainage since the median was used for that purpose, calling in workers for a holiday weekend. We bitch about signs here, but the ones that were designed and made so quickly seem to be coherent, and the straw probably means the grass in the new median will be better than mine, since DOT grass smokes crack or something.  I have a lot of respect for people that work alongside speeding traffic already, but this is impressive. It was a very smooth ride. (Edit for YouTube bullshit)

[signalman]

^It looks like a smooth transition on the crossovers.  ODOT did an excellent and speedy job getting I-70 EB flowing again.

[6a]

They said they'd fix it in a month, and by God they did; so I don't doubt ODOT will get it done.

I had nothing else to do today so I watched the cameras. They promised to get the EB lanes open by noon, they really did. This truck was actually the fifth or sixth vehicle , a black SUV was first, lol.

[6a]

Soooo...lets talk about the gigantic Michigan left that's been created (they're calling it a Buckeye left because sports) and how it exposes the general idiocy of the motoring public. The ramp from I-270 NB to I-70 WB is closed, so the detour is north on 270 to Roberts Rd, the next exit, then loop back onto 270 SB. Creative use of a DDI, I might add.



What they've done is squeeze WB Roberts into the right lane across the bridge. This freed up the DDI left lane to be used without signal control as a free flowing lane to re enter the freeway. ODOT is still doing a good job informing people of this kind of thing via social media and the like. The public tends to disagree (as if this was planned by ODOT in the first place.)

Not sure why you changed the traffic pattern at 270 & Roberts. Traffic was fine during rush hour Mon & Tues. now it's awful

Guess what? Interstate traffic is always, always going to trump surface roads. Sorry about your spoiled commute, but I seem to have found my way around it just fine.

The traffic load to utilize Roberts rd bridge isn't heavy enough to justify shutting down Roberts rd to 270 south

See above. Also, I sincerely feel for those DOT employees that have to attend public meetings. I really do.

All in all it seems like it works well, though. Yes, WB Roberts is a mess at rush hour but get over it. The exits are signed well, actually the 270 NB exit is signed in such a way that kinda creates a secret lane (it makes it look like the 70 WB detour but is a bypass of sorts using the cd lane.) my one gripe is at the top of the ramp. Three traffic lights on a mast, they bagged the left one, but people still stop. Defeats the purpose of creating the continuous lane.

[vtk]

I thought they're calling it a Buckeye U-Turn, not a Buckeye Left.  And it's distinct from the Michigan left, so it might as well have a different term.  They're also doing one of those on 33 at Avery-Muirfield when they close 270 SWB for bridge work, and I suppose they could do an inverted one at Wilson Rd for the 70EB-270NB detour.

What pisses me off is ODOT's insistence on having detours where you pass the thing that's closed, then go miles out of the way, when exiting or detouring before you even get to the closure might work better.  I guess the reasoning is, one might not be aware they need to take the detour before they get to what's closed, but when you're telling people about it ahead of time on social media, that point is moot.  ODOT is specifically telling Hilliard and Dublin commuters on social media to plan ahead and go all the way down to Grove City and come up 71 to get to downtown.  If they're planning ahead, they can just as easily go the other way on 270 and come down 315, distributing the traffic more evenly and probably getting to work with less delay.

[GCrites]

The people who have the most trouble with this sort of thing aren't getting ODOT social media updates.

[Bickendan]

I thought they're calling it a Buckeye U-Turn, not a Buckeye Left.  And it's distinct from the Michigan left, so it might as well have a different term.  They're also doing one of those on 33 at Avery-Muirfield when they close 270 SWB for bridge work, and I suppose they could do an inverted one at Wilson Rd for the 70EB-270NB detour.

What pisses me off is ODOT's insistence on having detours where you pass the thing that's closed, then go miles out of the way, when exiting or detouring before you even get to the closure might work better.  I guess the reasoning is, one might not be aware they need to take the detour before they get to what's closed, but when you're telling people about it ahead of time on social media, that point is moot.  ODOT is specifically telling Hilliard and Dublin commuters on social media to plan ahead and go all the way down to Grove City and come up 71 to get to downtown.  If they're planning ahead, they can just as easily go the other way on 270 and come down 315, distributing the traffic more evenly and probably getting to work with less delay.

It might work better, but ODOT might be trying to keep the surface street network from getting overburdened. Why clog two or three arteries/collectors when you can get by with clogging a single interchange? Locals who know their way around the area with their eyes closed will take the previous arteries to skirt by; everyone else will follow the official signs and/or bitch about ODOT's 'lack of communication'.

[6a]

I thought they're calling it a Buckeye U-Turn, not a Buckeye Left.  And it's distinct from the Michigan left, so it might as well have a different term.  They're also doing one of those on 33 at Avery-Muirfield when they close 270 SWB for bridge work, and I suppose they could do an inverted one at Wilson Rd for the 70EB-270NB detour.

I think it was the dispatch calling the buckeye left but yeah, I've seen both.

[6a]

Oh wow, the bridge is opening 7/21 at midnight, a week early. The contractor gets a $240,000 bonus for finishing early. Nicely done, guys!

[cl94]

Saw that on Facebook.

I'm actually quite shocked at how ODOT has performed lately. When I lived in Ohio, everything was crap. They've done a 180 in the past decade. Basically the opposite of what NYSDOT has done in the same time period.