How Our Crew Tackled a First-Time Challenge on I-70

When Superintendent Dustin Harre looked at the plans for the new westbound ramp bridge on the Improve I-70: Warrenton to Wentzville project, he saw that the I-70/I-64 interchange bridges were going to be a challenge for him and his crews, especially with decorative wing walls sitting atop a battered pile foundation system. It became a new problem to solve, with live traffic roaring past and a schedule that wasn’t going to wait.   

That challenge set the stage for a major milestone. Our crews completed the two new interchange bridges, each roughly 307 feet long and built in four spans, constructed right alongside the existing structures to keep disruption to a minimum. 

The battered pile system wasn’t especially complicated but was a challenge due to the tight skew of the bridge, large abutments, and live traffic next to them. “The detached wing wall and foundation was new to us,” Harre said. The foundation relied on a mix of angled and straight H-piles driven into the footing to carry the load, a setup the crew was familiar with, and they relied on their expertise to keep the rest of the project on pace.   

 With two lanes of live traffic staying open through most of the construction, a majority of the heavy work shifted to the nighttime. 

“Traffic is definitely the biggest challenge — getting things in and out and working around live lanes,” said Dustin. “We have to keep two lanes of traffic open at all times throughout the day, so we were only able to close one lane at night for the carriers.” 

The pressure of the project didn’t just test systems — it tested people. 

Somewhere in the middle of the drilled-shaft work, foreman Michael Shepherd stepped up and took ownership of his own night crew, keeping subcontractors on pace while bouncing between drill locations across the site. 

“He took on his own crew and ran things at night to keep our subcontractors progressing on site,” Harre said. “We had a lot of drilled shafts to complete, so he was constantly bouncing from location to location.” 

It’s the kind of milestone that doesn’t show up in the concrete or the steel, but it’s just as important — a crew member growing into a leadership role under real pressure, on a live interstate, with no room for error. 

None of these milestones happened by accident. They happened because a crew was willing to take on something they’d never done before, adapt when the job demanded it, and keep pushing even with a highway full of traffic just feet away. Finishing ahead of schedule isn’t the end of the story — it’s the momentum carrying us into the next phase of the project. 

As always, slow down, stay alert in work zones, and help our crews make it home safe at the end of every shift.