experience itself. But Astaneh, I read that they are using multiple
speed instructions, as on sharpest turn, speed limit is 35mph, that
means you must have felt unfortable at 40mph at sharpest turn ? I
don't support multiple speed zones !
On 11/11/09, Gerard Madden, SE <gmse4603@gmail.com> wrote:
> With Respect,
>
> but why should structural engineers be looking at acceptable speed limits,
> turning radius and traffic safety measures for this? I'm also not saying the
> design is doesn't have its flaws. But realistically speaking, this is
> probably the trickiest portion of the span replacement with a new bridge
> next to an old bridge and a tunnel all in the same area.
>
> Unless this temporary segment of the bridge is structurally deficient, this
> sounds like the job for Traffic Engineers to figure out, not structural
> engineers. The SE designs the bridge to span the route specified by the
> traffic engineer. I'm sure they had to work closely since each decision of
> one impacts the other., but the Traffic Engineer should be the one to decide
> the pathway of the road.
>
> I know what your response will be since likely the SE is the prime for this
> project...but that is another matter.
>
> I have no professional experience with Caltrans and it's bureaucracy so I
> have no opinion other than what every other driver experiences on the road.
>
> Anyway, I drove over this about 4 times in a month, I felt it was adequately
> signed but people were driving like it was any other stretch of road. It was
> awkward to drive for sure, but it's easily navigated at 35-40 mph.
>
> -gm
>
>
>
> -gm
>
> On Wed, Nov 11, 2009 at 7:24 AM, Abolhassan Astaneh-Asl <
> astaneh@ce.berkeley.edu> wrote:
>
>> Those of you who repeat what Caltrans says that these accidents, now a
>> fatal one, are the fault of victims, please stay tuned until Monday, when
>> I
>> plan to release the results of our study of this S-curve and whether or
>> not
>> it is designed correctly which it is not. I have driven over that S-shape
>> several times and first time I did, I almost got to hit the curb like this
>> trucker did. I am a very careful driver such that my wife sometimes
>> complains that why don't you go a bit faster! I was going 40 but this
>> S-curve sneaks on you. Also, no one expects a very sharp S-curve in the
>> middle of a straight bridge that they have driven over for years. There is
>> no way that anyone can convince public that in a stretch of road only
>> about
>> 600 feet long, which this S-curve is , you had 47 accidents with one
>> fatality and several injuries in only 55 days since its opening and it is
>> all fault of drivers and engineers are innocent.
>>
>> The root of this problem lies in complete corruption of Caltrans itself
>> and
>> its Seismic Advisory Board. After 1989 Earthquake , when Caltrans
>> structures
>> collapsed and killed 39 of the 60 or so fatalities of that earthquake,
>> Governor of California established a Seismic Advisory Board to be
>> independent of Caltrans and be above Caltrans acting as a watch dog to
>> review and approve what Caltrans does. The Board was chaired by the late
>> Professor Housner, who was truly the father of earthquake engineering
>> along
>> with the the Late Professor Newmark.
>> When he retired from the Seismic Advisory Board, the next chair and the
>> current chair, and almost all members of the 5-member board started using
>> their position to obtain multi-million dollar research and consulting
>> contracts. Having been involved with bridge work in California and doing
>> research and consulting for Caltrans in a legitimate manner, I have been
>> to
>> meetings that the Chair and members of this Seismic Advisory Board have
>> presented their work to Caltrans , as I was doing my work at the same
>> meeting, only to have
>> Caltrans present their own work to them at the meeting of Seismic Advisory
>> Board for approval. As a result of this blatant violation of not only
>> Professional Engineering canons, but, more importantly the trust that
>> public
>> has in engineers, the Seismic Advisory Board is turned now to an organ of
>> public relations office of Caltrans . Quite often the Chair of Seismic
>> Advisory Board and members come out and talk to reporters, presenting
>> themselves as an independent watchdog as the charter of the SAB indicates
>> and defend Caltrans yet they do not disclose that they have millions of
>> contracts from Caltrans as a consultant or researcher or both to Caltrans.
>>
>> Those of you who feel that no engineer should speak of ill about fellow
>> engineers are unknowingly responsible for the death of innocent people who
>> are killed in structures that are designed incorrectly not only due to
>> incompetence, they might be understood, but because of this type of
>> corruption in our profession. The killer S-curve, should have been
>> reviewed
>> and approved by the Seismic Advisory Board but of course it was not .
>> The
>> SAB is only a place that you get your payment from Caltrans and rubber
>> stamp anything brought before you, otherwise, you will not get on the
>> board
>> and if you do by mistake, you will be fired.
>>
>>
>> If you are interested in knowing who are the members of the Seismic
>> Advisory Board, please go to following link where there is official
>> brochure
>> of SAB. And if you want to know which member of the Board has received
>> multi-million dollars grants from Caltrans just Google the names of the
>> member + Caltrans. Just an example: Dr. Frieder Seible of UCSD, the
>> current
>> Chair of the Seismic Advisory Board has received millions of dollars to
>> do
>> testing at UCSD which includes his summer salary payment as well as for
>> private consulting.
>>
>> http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/esc/earthquake_engineering/SAB_Brochure_112107.pdf
>>
>> Stay tuned and please do not be an accomplice to this corruption. Instead,
>> let us cleanse our profession from unethical and illegal conduct of a very
>> few corrupt engineers who are making our engineering profession to sink
>> below any despised profession. Please do not blindly accept what
>> engineers,
>> especially Caltrans says with checking the facts.
>>
>>
>> Best regards.
>>
>>
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--
Avi Sharma
2nd Year
Department of Civil Engineering,
SRKNEC, India
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