WMATA design and construction standards, to which the SSTC was supposed to have been designed and built, require expansion/contraction joints be spaced no farther than 100 feet apart. The 315 ft. by 580 ft. SSTC has NONE. Extensive cracking in the SSTC, which was the reason behind KCE's March 15, 2013 report, is likely caused by the SSTC's complete lack of expansion/contraction joints. WMATA's engineers say that without expansion/contraction joints, and with the SSTC's other serious design and construction flaws, that the SSTC's required 50-yr. service life is in jeopardy. They also say that the SSTC will be expensive to operate and maintain. Both KCE and WMATA blame the SSTC's serious defects on errors and omissions by the SSTC's contractor/builder, Foulger Pratt, engineer/designer, Parsons Brinkerhoff, and concrete inspector/tester and special quality inspector, Balter Company.
How does one "fix" a 315 ft. by 580 ft., existing (albeit unopened) concrete building, that's supposed to have expansion/contraction joints located every 100 ft. or less, that doesn't have ANY? Is it possible to do so? One would think that more than a year after KCE's report that Montgomery County and its experts would have answered these questions. Not so. Nonetheless, Montgomery County presses ahead with repairs that won't fix the problem (no expansion/contraction joints). A concrete overlay won't fix the problem (total lack of expansion/contraction joints). Exterior steel braces on cracked concrete beams with 3-inch thick pieces of concrete falling from them (according to Engineering News Record) won't fix the problem either (no expansion/contraction joints).
One would also think that more than a year after KCE's report, and as Montgomery County presses ahead with "repairs" that won't fix the problem (the SSTC's complete lack of expansion/contraction joints), that Montgomery County and its experts would have presented a plan to the public, who paid and are paying for the $120+ million, lemon SSTC, that addresses the problem (the SSTC's complete lack of expansion/contraction joints). Not so. Neither Montgomery County, the Federal Transit Administration nor the Maryland Transit Administration has held public meetings to explain to the public what they're doing and why, and allow the public to ask their questions and to make their comments on the public record. Public funding for the $120+ million, lemon SSTC is 53% federal, 11% state and 36% county.
Is it because Montgomery County and their experts don't have an answer for the problem (the SSTC's complete lack of expansion/contraction joints)? If so, then there's only one answer: REJECT the seriously flawed, unfixable, lemon SSTC, and demand our money back.
No comments:
Post a Comment