Transportation Solutions for Goods

Goods Movement, Transportation & Rail Moffatt & Nichol provides comprehensive planning, design, and program management services for projects ranging from major interchanges and freeways to local streets and rural highways.  Our rail and transit experience comprises of both light and heavy rail applications, including those that feature intermodal freight facilities, switching and marshalling yards, and industrial sidings.  Our expertise in bridge and related structures includes inspection, widening, rehabilitation, planning, and final design and extends to bridge fendering, vessel collision, and modeling for bridge scour. Roads & Bridges --------------- In the traditional transportation arena, Moffatt & Nichol offers a multi–disciplined approach to completing projects and provides special expertise in seismic analysis, deep foundations, intermodal systems, vessel impact, and scour analysis. This approach allows us to provide clients with a high level of value-added services for the complete range of project development – planning through design to construction. Our structural capabilities encompass inspection, planning, analysis, design, and construction document preparation for rehabilitation, retrofit or new construction of bridges, trestles and grade separations. This experience includes bridge geometry, superstructures, substructures, and approaches. As evidence of this capability, Moffatt & Nichol has prepared planning or design for more than 500 bridges ranging from one of the world’s largest interchanges, the El Toro “Y” in Irvine, California, through the $2.4 billion Alameda Corridor - a dedicated railroad freight and industrial expressway in Los Angeles - to more typical two-lane structures. Moffatt & Nichol offers these same capabilities for rehabilitation, upgrade, or new construction of roadways and highways. Project types have ranged from multi-level, complex interchanges to smaller two-lane service roads. This experience includes the design of vertical/horizontal alignments, preparation of public hearing maps, right-of-way, development of capacity analysis, geometrics and channelization of roadways and intersections, highway drainage, traffic staging, and traffic control and pavement marking plans. Goods Movement -------------- Moffatt & Nichol, internationally recognized as a leader in the planning and design of ports, harbours and marine terminals, extends its expertise to the complex infrastructure that supports Goods Movement. Unique in the market, Moffatt & Nichol’s expertise in the analysis and forecasting of cargo markets, transportation logistics and investment strategies, are complemented by the firm’s global practices to deliver integrated solutions to a variety of projects, including intermodal transportation systems, commercial ports and harbours and logistics distribution networks. Moffatt & Nichol's practice has expanded to support the larger demands of the goods movement industry globally. Today, with a portfolio of more than 6,000 projects, the firm provides clients worldwide with customized service and a level of excellence that have become Moffatt & Nichol's hallmark. Transportation Corrdors ----------------------- Moffatt &Nichol remains on the leading edge of planning, engineering, design, and project management of Transportation Corridors. Companies, institutions and governments involved in the movement of freight, now need to know more about those movements than ever before. Moffatt & Nichol provides a unique multi-disciplined approach, which allows clients to take advantage of the firm’s expertise in economics, planning, design and management. Moffatt & Nichol applies this type of expertise to a variety of project types, including intermodal transportation corridors, commercial ports and harbors, and urban waterfronts. We provide innovative solutions to the multifaceted challenges our clients face with intermodal corridor planning and design as well as broader road transportation issues. Understanding why freight goes where it does, which mode of transport is more efficient than another, and how to make decisions tying all of these variables together, has become a necessary function of today's transportation agencies. Moffatt & Nichol has served Departments of Transportation, port authorities, shipping lines, railroads, investment bankers, MPOs, and other public / private U.S. and international agencies in more than 40 countries. Rail Capabilities ----------------- Ferri Terminals ---------------- Global Commercial Advisory Services ----------------------------------- Asset Valuation & App Consulting -------------------------------- Bridge Inspection ----------------- Moffatt & Nichol’s expertise in Bridge Inspection covers a wide range of clientele and inspection types. Our experience includes the routine NBIS inspection of highway bridges and culverts, as well as ancillary structures such as sign structures and high mast light poles, for State DOT clients as well as municipalities. Our clients also have required inspections for rehabilitation and repairs of substructures and superstructures. Railroads bridge inspections are an expanding element of our core practices, including steel and timber viaducts and smaller spans. Our strength in underwater inspections of marine structures also carries over to bridge foundation inspections. Deep Foundations ---------------- Moffatt & Nichol has completed many complex projects that involve advanced engineering design, technology and innovation. Typical projects include large bridge foundations, deep berths, floating dry docks, oil and gas terminals, piers and wharves. In addition, the firm’s professionals add significant experience in the design of offshore platforms, locks and dams. Large marine and riverine engineering projects require designers to coordinate multiple engineering disciplines and understand construction methods at the time of concept design and type selection. Challenges include weak soil conditions, and the methods in which large and heavy structures can be constructed using floating equipment that is vulnerable to winds, waves and currents. These waves and currents can also scour the structure foundations to great depths. Finally, large vessels may impact the structure, imposing huge loads that can have disastrous consequences. Moffatt & Nichol’s Marine Foundations Group is unique in its ability to provide comprehensive engineering analysis and design that covers, integrates and balances all of these specialized service areas. Economic Analysis ----------------- Bridge Design ----------------------- Structural capabilities at Moffatt & Nichol encompass all aspects of bridge design including bridge inspections, widening, rehabilitation, planning and final design of bridges and grade separations, seismic retrofit of bridges and construction inspection services. The firm has prepared final plans, specifications, and cost estimates (PS&E) for the construction of more than 1,000 highway bridges and railroad grade separations throughout California alone. These projects have included a wide range of span lengths and incorporated all types of concrete and steel superstructures in their design. This variety of structure types has included both fixed and moveable spans, steel and concrete box girders with haunches or constant depth; curved girders; multiple plate girders; steel rolled beams; steel composite girders; prestressed and post-tensioned concrete AASHTO beams and Bulb-T girders; and truss structures. Curved girder bridges and bridges over waterways are special areas of expertise of the firm, as well as the seismic design and retrofitting of bridge structures. Moffatt & Nichol’s transportation expertise enables us to provide comprehensive planning and design services for a variety of highway and bridge projects with varying conditions that range from rural mountainous areas to urbanized areas. The firm also provides comprehensive bridge inspection and rehabilitation design services, including underwater inspection services. Highway Design --------------- Moffatt & Nichol has a successful record delivering projects that range in size and complexity from small-scale local street improvements to complex, multi-billion dollar projects involving several modes such as the Alameda Corridor Program. Our experience encompasses all phases of project development, including feasibility studies, preliminary and final design, and construction support. The firm offers expertise in the planning and design of local streets, roads, freeways, highways and bridges. We have extensive experience and proven success in completing project study reports (PSRs), project reports (PRs), and plans, specifications, and cost estimates (PS&Es) for highway and roadway projects in for cities, counties, local agencies, and Departments of Transportation. Representative Projects ----------------------- Santa Barbara Roundabout Owner: Santa Barbara County Association of Governments Location: Santa Barbara, California Moffatt & Nichol was contracted by The Santa Barbara County Association of Governments (SBCAG), through the Measure D Highway Program, to provide viable alternatives to meet traffic demands where three local roadways and the Old Coast Highway intersect near U.S. Route 101. The solution came in the form of a roundabout, seen as a good fit for the Santa Barbara lifestyle, as modern roundabouts tend to provide better traffic circulation and serve as traffic calming devices while minimizing traffic accidents. The selected configuration incorporated a safe and user-friendly pedestrian and bicycle path to meet the needs of Santa Barbara’s avid cyclists. To address environmental requirements, the Moffatt & Nichol team took maximum advantage of the available street cross section to provide a sidewalk along the Old Coast Highway that avoids impacting the nearby historic tennis academy. The final design complements the architectural theme of Coast Village Road and includes elements such as planters with sandstone accents and native plant species, truck apron, and landscaping that represent input from local groups. The resultant roundabout reflects a successful partnership of designers and Santa Barbara stakeholders. Scour Analysis --------------- Moffatt & Nichol has in-house expertise on tidal and river mechanics, sediment transport/scour analysis, coastal engineering and hydrology and hydraulics. Applying this expertise together with our 1-D, 2-D and 3-D advance numerical modeling capability, we can evaluate scouring potential for bridges at diversely different site conditions. We have performed scour screening of more than 1000 bridges using FHWA procedures, performed scour analysis of more than 50 bridges, and developed design countermeasures for many scour-critical bridges. On the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge, Moffatt & Nichol performed hydrodynamic numerical modeling and physical model testing to forecast the scouring potential. The level of scouring was substantially less than predicted by using empirical formula. For the Niblick Road Bridge over the Salinas River, the foundation piles were designed to be functional after an extreme storm with foundation soil removed because of scouring. Hunts Lane Grade Separation -------------------------------- Owner: San Bernardino Associated Governments Location: Colton/San Bernardino, California Practices/Services: Goods Movement, Transportation and Rail The Hunt’s Lane project site is located within an earthquake fault zone with one of the highest slip rates in California, with an average movement of about two feet over 50 years, and a potential movement of up to nine feet in a maximum credible event earthquake. Added to the mix, is a bridge that spans the railroad tracks, crossing the fault line at approximately a 45-degree angle. The required design criteria used was to prevent total collapse. To accommodate ground movement; a long simple-span superstructure supported by abutments at each end was selected. A cast-in-place concrete box girder was used for the deck as its rigidity will help prevent collapse if the superstructure becomes partially supported on the seat. Supported on elastomeric bearing pads, with soil restrained at the abutments, allows the structure relatively “free” movement during a major event. In addition, two independent deck superstructures on the east and west are used to reduce the twisting or the racking effect that a skewed ground rupture could impose on the abutment diaphragms. High cantilever abutments with elongated seat widths comprise the south abutment, while the north abutment is a column-supported elongated seat. Both abutments have independent footings for the east- west structure, which permits independent movement in the event of a ground rupture. The abutments are designed to allow the superstructure to ride or “float” on the elongated seat during a major seismic event. The MSE walls enclose the fill at the approaches; however, the area immediately behind the end-diaphragms is not backfilled, allowing the superstructure to move into this area and accommodate potential ground deformations. Driven pile foundations are proposed due to anticipated underlying alluvial soil settlements and relatively high groundwater, with the potential for liquefaction. The proposed piles are to be steel pipe piles, driven to a depth of approximately 60 feet below existing grade. The steel pipe pile was selected for high capacity and ductility, lower cost, and ease of construction. The piles are designed to accommodate additional down-drag loads induced from liquefaction at the highest estimated potential groundwater elevation for each support location.