Carolina TEA, as a subconsultant to KCI, provided bridge design, bridge quality control, and overall project risk management for the I-95 Widening Project from MM 0 to MM 8. The project schedule was accelerated from an initially aggressive 48-month design and permitting timeline to just 32 months.

The project involved widening 8 miles of I-95, from the Georgia state line to north of US 278. The first 5 miles were widened to the median, and the remaining 3 miles were widened on both the median and outside. Improvements were also made to interchanges and roadways along US 17 and US 278.

At MM 5, the US 17 interchange was retained with only minor modifications. The US 278 interchange at MM 8 was likely replaced, and a new interchange was constructed at Purrysburg Road at MM 3. Additionally, John Smith Road over I-95 was replaced and relocated as part of the project.

Carolina TEA was responsible for the design of the I-95 bridges over the Savannah River Overflow and for checking all other structures, including culvert extensions, sound walls, and retaining walls.

Carolina TEA also led the project’s Risk Management efforts, being heavily involved in all aspects of the project. This included roadway design, construction phasing, MOT (maintenance of traffic), environmental permitting, traffic analysis, bridge design, geotechnical investigations, railroad coordination, utility coordination, and constructability analysis. Following the Washington State DOT risk management guidelines, Carolina TEA helped identify potential risks to the project’s schedule and cost, tracked them through both qualitative and quantitative analyses, and implemented mitigation strategies to safeguard the project’s success and benefit SCDOT.