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tehmightyengineer t1_j9lhf79 wrote

Reply to comment by JimBones31 in Detour on 17 by JimBones31

Sub-consultant structural engineer to the contractor that was hired by the DOT for this job. I designed the concrete and reinforcement for the new culvert. Just finished a re-design of the new culvert this afternoon to allow them to fabricate it faster than scheduled. But it's all a big team effort. MaineDOT does a great job and the major roadway contractors in Maine are top notch.

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JimBones31 OP t1_j9li113 wrote

That's awesome!

Quick question. I have an appointment in the detour but no where near the culvert. Am I allowed to drive past the sign since I'm not going through?

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tehmightyengineer t1_j9ljcqw wrote

I've not been to the job site so I don't know if there's any hazards (downed lines, unstable roads, etc.) that exist. But generally when there's a bridge out local traffic is permitted to travel up right almost to the bridge if they need to access something on the detoured road.

I'd say go for it and if you see a flagger, cop, or foreman just give a quick shout out your window asking if you can proceed safely and they'll let you know what to do. But obviously there may be other issues beyond what a typical bridge site has that may make this different. Whatever you do, don't approach the culvert area; the embankments by the culvert are almost certainly unstable.

And don't pass any signs or persons that indicate danger ahead. They may also need to close down the area for work to stabilize the site so you might be stopped short of your destination if they need a large area for equipment or what not; but I would hope that worst case is you likely could park close to your appointment and walk to it.

Edit: The proper signage you would normally see is they'll have a detour sign and some barricades with a zig-zag path between them and another sign that says "local traffic only". Then you're allowed to pass. But, again, this was an unplanned detour so I have no idea what signage they've managed to put up.

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JimBones31 OP t1_j9lk13h wrote

Thank you! I've never driven in a detour area so I wanted to let people know but also was unsure if I was cool to drive in and out real quick nowhere near the site. 😁

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