Crews Pour Concrete on Section of New I-10 Martinez Creek Bridge

Workers pouring concrete at Martinez Creek Bridge (July 1, 2020)

Construction workers on I-10 in east San Antonio kicked off July in high gear. The contractor for the mainlane widening project between I-410 and Loop 1604 completed a major step in rebuilding the Martinez Creek bridge by pouring concrete for the westbound portion of the bridge deck. 

Pouring a bridge deck, the paved surface on which cars drive, is a massive undertaking. The deck of the Martinez Creek bridge will be eight and a half inches thick when completed and is made up of precast panels and freshly laid concrete.

The bridge pour took place the night of July 1. First, workers laid the cast panels to span the distance between the bridge's beams and form the underside of the deck on the westbound portion of the bridge. They then poured fresh concrete on top of the panels to keep them in place and form the top of the deck. This work required 200 cubic yards of concrete. That’s equivalent to twenty-three truckloads of concrete. 

Pouring concrete requires a great deal of equipment, coordination, and precision. During the pouring process, trucks back up two-at-a-time to a pump truck. The pump truck is used to place the concrete on the deck. Finally, a machine called a “screed” is used to spread and smooth the concrete.

Crews have come a long way since beginning work on this section of interstate. The new six-lane bridge at Martinez Creek is just one of many improvements under construction and planned for I-10 in east San Antonio. The mainlane widening project for the section of I-10 between I-410 and Loop 1604 , which began in late 2018, is expected to be complete in the summer of 2021.