Juan Bosch Bridge

Concept

To blend in with its surroundings, the bridge was conceived to respect the silhouette of the Duarte Bridge. However, rather than repeat the same structural type, a cable-stayed design was chosen, since the span to be crossed, 180 m (590 ft), was too short to justify a suspension bridge. Its towers are also the same height as those of the existing bridge, which is unusually low for a cable-stayed bridge. The database Structurae classifies it as a cable-stayed bridge with a semi-fan cable arrangement.

The project was designed by engineer Leonardo Fernández Troyano of the Spanish firm Carlos Fernández Casado.

Dimensions and structure

The bridge has a total length of about 648 m (2,126 ft) and is divided into three sections: the east access viaduct, the main bridge and the west access viaduct, measuring 233 m (764 ft), 346.9 m (1,138 ft) and 68.2 m (224 ft) respectively.

Its deck reaches a maximum height of 35 m (115 ft) above the river, while its towers are 63 m (207 ft) tall. In total it has 15 spans: the access viaducts are made up of 25 m (82 ft) spans, while the main bridge has five spans of 36 m (118 ft), 47.5 m (156 ft), 180 m (590 ft), 47.5 m (156 ft) and 36 m (118 ft), the central one crossing the river. The deck is 33.5 m (110 ft) wide, originally divided into four traffic lanes, two lanes reserved for a future urban rail line, and pedestrian walkways, and it is supported by 48 double stays spaced 10 m (33 ft) apart. Today all six lanes are used for road traffic.

Foundations

The bridge has 14 piers. Ten are founded on spread footings, while the other four had to be founded on micropiles. The towers, each with two pylons, also rest on spread footings.

Construction method

The side spans, which lie over land, were built on temporary falsework. The main span, by contrast, crosses a river about 150 m (490 ft) wide and had to be built by cantilevering in segments 5 m (16 ft) long, supported by the stay cables. The access viaducts consist of simply supported spans built with precast girders 25 m (82 ft) long.

Cost and opening

The project required an investment of more than RD$600 million.

The bridge was opened on 19 December 2001 by President Hipólito Mejía, and is the first cable-stayed bridge over the Ozama River.

Early deterioration and expansion joints (2006–2020)

In December 2006, the Senate of the Dominican Republic passed a resolution asking the executive branch to order a thorough investigation into the bridge's construction, which showed visible deterioration in its protective areas, and to determine the responsibility of the construction firm for alleged defects in its steel structure.

According to engineer Teodoro Tejada, a former president of the Dominican College of Engineers, Architects and Surveyors (CODIA), in July 2012 the contractor Odebrecht installed new expansion joints, as the previous ones had deteriorated with time. In October 2020, the Ministry of Public Works and Communications (MOPC) reported a temporary repair of cracks in the joints, whose deterioration was affecting vehicles using the bridge.

Structural assessments (2015–2016)

In 2015, a paper presented at the 13th Latin American and Caribbean Conference for Engineering and Technology (LACCEI) assessed the structural condition of the bridge and its components through inspections.

In May 2016, as part of the Study of Structural Reliability of Bridges in the Dominican Republic ("Estudio de Confiabilidad Estructural de Puentes en República Dominicana") carried out by the Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo with the backing of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology and the National Fund for Scientific and Technological Innovation and Development (FONDOCYT), a network of wireless sensors with accelerometers was installed at key points of the bridge to analyze the effect of traffic on the structure.^{[citation needed]}

Expansion joint replacement (2021)

On 28 May 2021 the MOPC began replacing the bridge's expansion joints, whose advanced deterioration caused flat tyres and damage to vehicles' front suspensions. Before the work began, a deputy minister for road maintenance said that the bridge's cables were in perfect condition. The work, awarded to the company Proyectos Industriales, S. A. (Pinsa), lasted 45 days in three 15-day stages, with support from the National Institute of Traffic and Land Transportation (INTRANT) and the traffic police (DIGESETT), who set up contraflow lanes and alternative routes.

Six joints of the Transflex type (models 400 and 900), made by Trelleborg, were installed, with an estimated service life of 15 years and a total cost of RD$48 million, which according to the MOPC benefited about 897,000 users. The wearing course was also repaved and the road markings renewed. Minister Deligne Ascención handed over the work on 22 July 2021.

Structural strengthening (2026)

In September 2026 the MOPC announced a structural strengthening programme for the country's four busiest bridges, including technical and vulnerability studies for work on the Juan Bosch and Duarte bridges. The plan also includes a new bascule bridge over the Ozama River, awarded for about US$75 million, and the relocation of the floating bridge.