CHARLES W. CULLEN BRIDGE

The Charles W. Cullen Bridge carries the SR1 Coastal Highway across the Indian River Inlet in Delaware. The roadway includes four lanes of traffic with shoulders, a 12 ft (3.6 m) sidewalk, and a sand bypass system. The bridge is divided into a 1,750 ft (533 m) long cable-stayed span unit and 850 ft (259 m) long approach spans. The cable-stayed main span is 950 ft (289 m), providing a minimum horizontal clearance of 900 ft (274 m) for the Inlet. The required vertical clearance over the 200 ft (61 m) wide navigation channel is 45 ft (14 m) with a maximum grade of 4% for the roadway profile.

The superstructure components include edge girders, floor beams, and a concrete slab. It is supported by two planes of stay cables anchored in the edge girders. The stay cables are anchored in two vertical reinforced concrete pylons with steel beams connecting two opposite stay anchorages to resist tensions across the pylon section. The floor beams and edge girders are post-tensioned. The top slab is also post-tensioned longitudinally in the vicinity of the transition piers and the center portion of the main span. The foundations for the main span unit consist of 36 in x 36 in 914 mm x 914 mm pre-stressed piles. The cable-stayed spans were built on falsework over land and in cantilever with a travelling form for the portion of the main span located over water. Design-build project.

The Charles W. Cullen Bridge has received the following awards:
2013 ACEC, Delaware Chapter – Grand Conceptor Award
2013 AGC of America/Alliant Build America – Best Design-Build Highway & Transportation Project
2012 ASCE Delaware Chapter – Outstanding Large Project of the Year