Bridge Work Super Highway, Mahidol

[realthaideal]

So.... for the last few months they've been closing one lane per side of the bridge crossing the Ping River at the Mahidol section of the Super Highway and doing all kinds of interesting things. I wish I didn't know jack about engineering, but maybe someone out there knows what it is they're up to. Are they retrofitting the support columns ? Drilling out old ones ? Sinking new ones ? I have no idea, but have seen massive drill bits, plenty of cement trucks come and go, and then there are those huge metal tubes that keep disappearing, so I have to assume they're now under the bridge in the water. How's that all go ? Any challenges with mud vs bedrock, etc ? Just wanna know what's going on around me. Thanks.

[JimsKnight]

Hmm, is that where highway 11 crosses through it?

[realthaideal]

"Hmm, is that where highway 11 crosses through it?"

Not sure if I confused you or if now you're confusing me...I don't tend to use the numbers for hwy's - guilty of having gone native in my directions method... But the road is called Mahidol /Aom Muang/ 1141 and runs south of the city from Ariport Plaza (Sanam Bin and Wing 41 to be exact) all the way by Chiang Mai Land, over the Ping River, and then to the big overpass intersection out by the Big C headed towards San Kamphaeng and Bor Sang.

It's just after the passing Chiang Mai Land that you hit the turn off that puts you up by Coq D'or n Nong Nual, then there's one more turn you can take to stay inside of the river and head up towards the city or go under the bridge to Pa Daet. If you go straight right after that, you hit the bridge of which I speak. There's a big police hq there on the left as well just as you get over the bridge. But meanwhile you can't help seeing orange cones, construction equipment, and retooled lanes squeezing traffic. It's been going on so long you probably have stopped thinking about it. Looks like they're on the last section of sinking the pylons, but I really don't know. As we've had other engineers comment on the road construction and overpasses b4, i was hoping to be enlightened about how this works.

[BossHogg]

i know where you mean and yes its been going on so long i dont notice it anymore....i believe they were doing flood defence work below the bridge . Dont know if thats related or not