DELIVERING THE BRIDGE - Bridges - page 146

From the beginning of scoping in about 1992 (procedures were differ-
ent then, so the start date is not that clear) through issuance of the record
of decision in 2003, the second and third stages for the Cattaraugus County
Route 219 Expressway segment lasted about eleven years. For Kosciuszko
Bridge, the second stage lasted from 1999 to 2002, and the third from
then through 2009, the year in which the record of decision was issued,
for a combined total of over ten years. The issuance of that decision tells
engineers that they can now stop considering further alternatives and focus
rather on detailed design.
Stage 4: Detailed Design and Agreements
Once an alignment has been chosen and environmental concerns met,
detailed design refers to final engineering to prepare specifications sufficient
for construction and for regulatory permits. In the New York State DoT,
detailed design is expected to create documents that make the project 90
percent ready for execution.
At the start of this stage in the process for the Route 219 Expressway,
the alignment that had been identified was still just a 500-foot-wide swath.
During detailed design, the precise alignment within that corridor had to
be specified. Once the right-of-way was exactly defined, the DoT could go
ahead and acquire the designated properties.
Upon careful mapping and analysis of the alignment, plans had to
be prepared for pavement, retaining walls, the soil subsurface on which
the road rests, erosion control, signs and signals, road illumination, water
management, sourcing and disposal of construction materials, and culverts
and bridges, among many other matters. The plans had to be reviewed for
practical constructability. Not least, the project team had to develop cost
estimates and a construction schedule.
The detailed design concluded with the completion of a document
known as plans, specifications, and estimates (PS&E). It must be specific
enough to be bid upon and to facilitate construction.
Overall, this fourth stage takes one to two years. The critical dif-
ficulties arise less from the practice of engineering design than from other
activities that must take place concurrently. A specialized office of the state
DoT obtains land owners' agreements to have their properties acquired—far
more of a challenge for a new highway alignment in upstate New York than
for a replacement bridge in New York City. Staff members contact the land-
owners and offer prices based on standard calculation. In hardship cases, as
when a farmer's property is split in a way that ruins the business, the agency
can offer to purchase more of the land than is essential for the project. In
New York State, if the owner refuses to sell, the DoT sends the case to the