Section 5: Bridge System Safety Program

Overview

The inventory of structures in Texas includes many structures that are several decades old. Most, if not all, of those structures were not designed to include the same standards as those being designed today. Also, the design engineers of that time did not have the benefit of utilizing the construction technology available today that helps to achieve longer spans in bridges. The Bridge System Safety Program will target several areas that will improve the safety of Texas drivers on and around Texas bridges through three subprograms.
The three subprograms of the
Bridge System Safety Program
 (BSSP)
are:
  • Higher Risk Bridges
     (PID Code = BSP)
  • Rail Replacement Program (PID Code = RRP)
  • Railroad Grade Separation Program (PID Code = RGS)

Higher Risk Bridges Program

The Higher Risk Bridges Program is a subprogram of the BSSP that addresses those structures that have:
  • Documented scour risks
  • Narrow Deck –
    26
    -ft or less in width (inside rail to inside rail) for two-way structures
  • Steel or timber piling with advanced section loss
  • Unprotected 2 column bents
Eligibility Requirements
  • On-
    s
    ystem
    . The Higher Risk Bridges Program will only fund the replacement or rehabilitation of on-system, TxDOT owned bridges. Bridges that are a part of a Comprehensive Development Agreement (CDA) or other non-state funded projects are not eligible.
  • Not eligible for HBP
    . The Higher Risk Bridges Program will focus on addressing safety issues on On-system structures that are not currently eligible for replacement through the Highway Bridge Program criteria.
  • General Condition ratings >4. The deck/superstructure/substructure/culvert ratings must be greater than 4.
Structures must meet one of the following criteria to be eligible:
  • Structures with small diameter columns (33-inch diameter or less), that are exposed to truck traffic or railroad traffic without a crash protection system.
  • Structures with substructure elements in the channel of a streambed, where the average span length of the structure is less than 50 ft. These structures must also have either documented scour that substantially affects the load carrying capacity or documented debris buildup during or immediately following two or more flood events.
  • Structures that are
    Scour Critical
    .
  • Narrow Structures.
    –
    A narrow structure is defined as a structure with Bridge Roadway Width (Item 51 from TxDOT Coding Guide) measuring 26-ft or less
    .
  • The Bridge Division will prioritize candidate narrow structures based on
    • Deck Width
    • AADT
    • % Trucks
  • Structures on the NHS that are Sub-Standard for Load Only (SSLO), meaning the bridge has good condition scores but has a load restriction.
  • Direct connectors or locally owned structures over On-system facilities are not eligible for BSSP regardless of width.

Statewide Prioritization and Programming

The following process is followed on a yearly basis to prioritize and program Higher Risk Bridge projects within the BSSP:
  • Bridge Division notifies
    District
    of the annual BSSP Program Call. Identification of candidate Higher Risk Bridge projects for the BSSP will occur at the same time as the annual HBP program call.
  • District
    proposes candidate projects based on a map of suggested projects provided by Bridge Division and based on District needs.
    District
    should provide written justification for each proposed project to assist in project selection. This justification should e
    xplain why
    each bridge is eligible for the BSSP program.
  • Bridge Division will evaluate each candidate project on a case-by-case basis. Projects with documented safety concerns related to one or more of the eligibility criteria listed in the previous section will be given priority during the selection process.
  • Projects are added to the program until funding is exhausted.
  • Bridge Division notifies
    District when project selection is complete.
Table 2-3: Bridge System Safety Program – Higher Risk Bridges Selection Process Schedule
Program Time
Month
Time Frame
Action Items
List Development
August
1 month
BRG prepares map of eligible candidate projects.
Program Call
September
1 month
District updates estimates and letting dates for ongoing projects during the program call.
Program Call
September - October
2 months
District evaluates eligible candidate projects and prepares written justifications
Selection Comments
November
2 weeks
District submits new candidate projects and accompanying written justifications
BSSP Approval
November
2 weeks
BRG selects new projects
Program Call Finalized
December - January
1.5 months
BRG prepares final call list
Final list sent to FIN
January
End of month
BRG sends final BSSP list to FIN.
TXDOTCONNECT Updates
February
1 month
District submits TXDOTCONNECT changes and creates new CSJs.

Railroad Grade Separation Program

The Railroad Grade Separation (RGS) Program
is a sub-program of the Bridge System Safety Program that
addresses the construction of new grade separation structures at existing at-grade highway-railroad crossings and the rehabilitation or replacement of deficient highway underpasses of railroads on the state highway system. The eligible state highway system routes must be of a classification greater than local road or rural minor collector on the functional classification scale; (i.e., they must be classified as federal-aid highways). Title 23 of the CFR Part 646 Subpart B – Railroad-Highway Projects provides federal policy and guidance on these types of projects.
Selected and prioritized highway-railroad grade separation projects are in some instances authorized in funding Category 6 RGS of the yearly Unified Transportation Program (UTP) under the CONSTRUCT level of authorization. Category 6 RGS funding is targeted for each of the following:
  • new grade separation structures
  • remedy of deficient railroad underpasses
Candidate projects for construction of new grade separation structures are prioritized using a cost-benefit index, while projects for railroad underpass replacement/rehabilitation are prioritized using a priority rating. The cost-benefit index and priority rating are summarized in the Statewide Prioritization and Programming section and described in detail in Chapter 10 of the
Rail-Highway
 Operations Manual.
Eligibility Requirements
Funding for Category 6 RGS should be limited to the actual structure and
any
other work necessary to make the structure serviceable and consistent with
Design Manual requirements.
 This limits Category 6 RGS
funded approach roadway work
,
 to that which is sufficient to transition the grade-line of the structure to an attainable touchdown with the existing or new approaching roadway that is at or near level grade. Roadway and other work that is outside these limitations should be funded from other categories.
These limitations should particularly control when the new or replacement structure will be constructed on a new alignment or at a new location.
Except in extraordinary situations, the existing at-grade highway-railroad crossing should be eliminated.
Statewide Prioritization and Programming
  • New Highway-Railroad Grade Separation Projects
    • The cost-benefit index used in prioritizing new highway-railroad grade separation projects is the estimated cost in millions of dollars that would be saved in highway user cost over a 50-year design life of the new grade separation structure constructed at the existing highway-railroad crossing. The higher the estimated user cost, the higher the priority. The estimated user cost includes costs due to casualties (fatalities and injuries) and personnel and traffic equipment delay.
    • Factors used in calculating a cost-benefit index are as follows:
    • Average daily traffic
    • Number of train movements
    • Number of highway fatalities, injuries, and property damage only crashes.
    • Period (range) in years for which casualty data are available.
    • Estimated yearly costs for personnel and traffic equipment delays due to waiting for trains to pass.
The data described for cost-benefit index calculation are compiled with data from the National Safety Council, CST, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Equipment Watch Rental Rate Blue Book.
When a new highway-railroad grade separation project eliminates an existing highway-railroad crossing with an active warning device (or is ordered by a state regulatory agency to install one), the respective railroad company is federally required to provide 5% of the project cost. See 23 CFR 646.210 for more detailed information.
  • Railroad Underpass Replacement/Rehabilitation Projects
    • Projects for railroad underpass replacement/rehabilitation are prioritized using a priority rating or score on a numerical scale of 0 through 100. The higher the number, the less sufficient the structure for underpass highway traffic, and thus, the higher the priority for replacement/rehabilitation.
    • The attributes and relative weights used in calculating a priority rating score are as follows:
    • Vertical clearance - 50%
    • Percent trucks - 30%
    • Horizontal clearance - 15%
    • Average daily traffic - 5%
    • This rating calculation uses the Bridge Inspection Database appraisal ratings (0 through 9) for vertical and horizontal clearance. The Bridge Inspection Database
      also
      provides percent trucks and average daily traffic
      information
      .
Table 2-4: Railroad Grade Separation Program Selection Process Schedule
Program Time
Month
Time Frame
Action Items
List Development
August
1 month
BRG prepares map of eligible candidate projects.
Program Call
September
1 month
District
updates estimates and letting dates for ongoing projects during the HBPprogram call.
Program Call
September - October
2 months
District
evaluates eligible candidate projects
BSSP Approval Selection Comments
November
1 month
District
submits new candidate projects
Program Call Finalized
December - January
1.5 months
BRG prepares final call list
Final list sent to FIN
January
End of month
BRG sends final RGS list to FIN.
TXDOTCONNECT Updates
February
1 month
District
submits TXDOTCONNECT changes and creates new CSJs.
* NOTE: Per the Rail-Highway Operations Manual, Chapter 2, 12-18 months are needed to get an agreement for an overpass from the time RRD-RSS receives the Exhibit A. 24+ months is needed for an underpass structure.
The main steps involved in the agreement process are:
  • Execution of preliminary engineering agreement (TxDOT + RR)
  • Design approval by BRG + Rail Division Rail Safety Section (RRD-RSS).
  • Design review by RR or RR Company’s
    C
    onsultant.
  • Design approval by RR for both plans and theoretical 5% cost calculations.
  • Estimates from RR for any track, flagging, and grade crossing work.
  • Agreement reviews and signatures by RRs to RRD-RSS.
  • Ex B process occurs after the agreement has been signed (100% plan approval).
Category 6 Developmental Authority (
6DA
) can be utilized to perform a feasibility study to determine the effects of changing a highway-railroad underpass structure to a highway-railroad overpass structure. Overpass structures are more desirable to the Department and the railroads. Contact your Bridge Division project manager for more information.

Rail Replacement Program

The Rail Replacement Program (
PID = RRP
) is
a
sub-program funded out of the Bridge
System Safety Program (Category 6
BSSP
)
). The goal of the RRP is to improve safety on bridges and bridge-class culverts that are in good condition, but have no traffic safety features, or have traffic safety features that do not comply with the Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware (MASH).
Refer to the TxDOT Bridge Railing Manual, Section 2 - FHWA Policy on Bridge Railing Overview. This section contains a list of numerous policy memorandums and reports issued by FHWA, the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHTO) and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) regarding bridge railing safety. Federal laws have also been passed that include measures to enhance the crashworthiness of roadside features.
Eligibility Requirements
T
o be considered eligible for RRP
funding
, a bridge or bridge-class culvert must meet the following eligibility requirements:
  • On-system
     – The RRP will only fund the replacement of bridge rails for On-system, TxDOT owned bridges. Bridges that are a part of a Comprehensive Development Agreement (CDA) or other non-state funded projects are not eligible. The focus of the RRP is on structures that have no other available funding options.
  • Not historic
     – The coordination process required to obtain approval for rails installed on historic
    bridges
    are more complex than for other highway bridges, and design and installation requires special consideration. Rail upgrades to historic
    bridges
    should be performed when the bridge undergoes a general restoration.
  • Not eligible for HBP, or not
    Poor condition
    – The RRP will focus only on On-system structures that are not currently eligible for replacement or rehabilitation. Bridges that
    are poor
     or are eligible for the Highway Bridge Program (HBP) will not be considered.
    Other considerations that may disqualify a structure from the RRP is the consideration of how narrow the existing structure is, and how an upgraded rail may exacerbate the issue.
  • General
    Condition rating
    s
     > 5
     – The deck/superstructure/substructure/culvert rating must be greater than 5.
  • Non-compliant or substandard rail
     – The bridge must have a non-compliant or substandard bridge rail, or have no safety feature, as indicated by the first digit “0” in Item 36, “Traffic Safety Feature” of the Bridge Inspection Database. A bridge is identified as having a non-compliant traffic safety feature if it lacks a safety feature or has a safety feature that is non-compliant
    per the Bridge Railing Manual
     . Rails that are height-deficient are also considered non-compliant but are subject to additional funding restrictions. However, the RRP will not fund work required to address heightdeficient rails where the deficiency is due to the overuse of overlay on bridge decks. These height deficiencies should be addressed by the District. Refer to the
    TxDOT Bridge Railing Manual
     for more information.
Some additional situations affecting eligibility for RRP funds are described below:
  • Compliant safety shapes not meeting FHWA test level requirements
     – If the bridge rail is a compliant safety shape, but the test level of the rail shape does not meet the posted speed of the roadway, then this rail replacement is eligible for RRP funding. RRP will also fund replacement of rails which do not meet the required FHWA minimum for a TL-3 designation on NHS bridges.
  • Bridge rails coded “1” in the Bridge Inspection Database
     – Any bridge rails marked as a “1” in the first digit of Item 36 are not eligible for the program. If there is a question as to validity of the Bridge Inspection Database coding, please refer to the
    TxDOT
    Bridge Railing Manual, Chapter 4, Section 2, Table 4-2. If a discrepancy with the as-built condition and Bridge Inspection Database coding is discovered, please coordinate with
    the District
     Bridge Inspection coordinator to have the database updated. Please utilize the
    Rail Identification Guide
     to properly identify the existing bridge rail.
  • Economic benefit
    –
    Conditions for candidate bridges will be evaluated to determine if
     retrofitting a new bridge rail
    is economically justified
    .
Funding
The RRP funding per bridge project will include the cost for replacing the entire
non-compliant bridge rail
plus the cost of
safety end treatments, transitions, mow strips
, and MBGF
, not to exceed
15
0 feet per corner
.
All other associated costs will need to be funded by a different category of funding. If the total length of approach rail exceeds
600 LF per bridge
, then a nonCategory 6 funding will be required to cover the total additional approach rail cost.
For culverts, the program will fund construction of a safety end treatment (SET) or MBGF if it is the more appropriate choice for the location.
All other costs associated with RRP projects are the responsibility of the District {Mobilization, Traffic Control, SW3P, etc.}.
Rail replacement projects should be coordinated to coincide with other projects using traffic control that encompass the limits of the bridge, or traffic control costs will be funded with a source other than Category 6.
Funding and policy for the RRP is supported by
IIJA
 and 23 CFR 133(b)(15), which states that eligible projects include highway and transit safety infrastructure improvements and programs.
Statewide Prioritization and Programming
Statewide prioritization and programing will be based on:
  • Bridges with d
    amaged bridge rails or frequently impacted rails are the highest RRP priority. Evidence of repeated collisions or significant impacts needs to be brought to BRG’s attention for funding review. BRG wants to ensure that significantly damaged substandard rails are not repaired in kind; therefore, if
    10 percent or 75 feet
    , whichever is least, of the entire bridge rail is damaged, all of the railing should be replaced with a compliant rail. The intent of this guidance is to discourage repairs to non-compliant rail due to lack of maintenance funds. A newer rail will help save maintenance funds because it will fare better in a vehicular collision, and it will be of standard construction, which is easier to repair.
  • Bridges with
    Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT) greater than or equal to 10,000 vehicles per day (vpd) and on bridges that are on the National Highway System (NHS).
  • Bridges with high impact frequencies, but AADT lower than 10,000 vpd will be considered by BRG for inclusion in the RRP on a case-by-case basis.
  • Bridges with
     design or posted speeds, whichever is higher, of 50 mph and greater.
The Bridge Division will prioritize candidate projects based on the below criteria and with input from the District. The criteria to prioritize RRP projects are as follows:
  • Rating 1 -- Rail damage is >= 10% of bridge rail or 75 ft. (whichever is the least)
  • Rating 2 -- AADT >= 10,000 vpd
  • Rating 3 -- On the NHS and the posted/design speed >= 50 mph
  • Rating 4 -- Not on the NHS and the posted/design speed >= 50 mph
  • Rating 5 -- AADT < 10,000 and with an accident history (case-by-case basis)
The RRP has an annual call for project consideration. Projects are programmed for four years at a time. The first two years of projects are included in the department's 24-month letting schedule with the following two years in a plan development stage. All of these projects are authorized for construction letting for their respective years. All project letting dates are subject to change based on changing conditions, fiscal funding constraints, or emergency projects.
Table 2-5: Rail Replacement Program Selection Process Schedule
Program Time
Month
Time Frame
Action Items
List Development
August
1 month
BRG prepares map of eligible candidate projects.
Program Call
September
1 month
District update
s
 estimates and letting dates for ongoing projects during the
program
 call.
Program Call
September - October
2 months
District evaluate
s
 eligible candidate projects and prepare
s
 written justifications
Selection Comments
November
2 weeks
District submit
s
 new candidate projects and accompanying written justifications
Program Call Finalized
December - January
1.5 months
BRG prepares final call
Final list sent to FIN
January
End of month
BRG sends final
RRP
 list to FIN.
TXDOTCONNECT Updates
February
1 month
District submit
s
 TXDOTCONNECT changes and
creates
 new CSJs.