Since opening in 1938, the 3,428-foot-long Charles J. Arrigoni Bridge has stood proudly as Connecticut’s longest bridge span with its twin tied through-arch main spans making it one the state’s most iconic structures. It is also one of the most crucial, carrying Route 66 and Route 17 across the Connecticut River between Middletown and Portland.
When inspections revealed deterioration on the concrete-filled steel grid deck, the Connecticut Department of Transportation prioritized repairs retaining STV to design a deck replacement on an accelerated schedule. That schedule proved demanding given the need to keep the bridge open during construction while contending with a mix of challenging composite materials, such as low-carbon steel and high-strength silicon steel, dating to its 1938 construction. The firm completed cost estimating and final design in just three months, delivering a solution that included replacing the 50,000 square feet of bridge deck.
