Biden Administration announces bridge improvement grant for Oklahoma

WASHINGTON, D.C. (KSWO) - The Biden-Harris Administration has announced a $839,807 grant to the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to improve bridges in the state.

According to a press release from the Federal Highway Administration, the grant, provided through the Accelerated Innovation Deployment (AID) Demonstration Program, is aimed to improve the long-term resilience of bridges throughout Oklahoma. The grant is one of 10 that is being provided across eight states along with the District of Columbia.

The grant received by ODOT will be used to apply “Ultra-High Performance Concrete (UHPC)” in an attempt to extend bridge life and reduce environmental and social impacts, according to the press release. According to FHWA, the UHPC is a “fiber-reinforced, cementitious composite material with mechanical and durability properties that far exceed those of conventional concrete materials.” They also state that the concrete will introduce less repair to the bridges in the future.

FHWA states that ODOT will be piloting the UHPC in a program to repair multiple joints of the Northbound and Southbound I-35 Cimarron Overflow bridges.

If the project is determined a success, ODOT will consider the material for future projects.