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Kleinfelder Recognized at 2020 APWA Awards for Improving Mobility and Safety of San Diego Transportation

Kleinfelder Recognized at 2020 APWA Awards for  Improving Mobility and Safety of San Diego Transportation

SAN DIEGO, California – At its Virtual Awards Event on September 10, the American Public Works Association (APWA) San Diego and Imperial Counties Chapter recognized four San Diego area projects that Kleinfelder provided services on. The projects varied from a bridge replacement to a new bikeway, and all centered on improving transportation mobility and safety in San Diego.

The Encinitas Coastal Rail Trail took home the Project of the Year award, while the Balboa Avenue Corridor Improvements, Old Otay Mesa Road, and Willow Street Bridge projects received Honor awards.

The awards recognize excellence in management, technical innovation, and community impact, as well as highlight the partnership of the managing agency, consultant (architect/engineer), and contractor–an alliance that is imperative to completing public works projects.

As San Diego’s population continues to grow, local agencies are prioritizing public works projects that increase connectivity among communities and provide residents with safe, convenient, and sustainable modes of transportation.

Projects like SANDAG’s Encinitas Coastal Rail Trail (2020 APWA Project of the Year award) increase accessibility to many vital community assets – from the Downtown Encinitas COASTER station, Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas, and Cardiff Elementary School, to Cardiff and San Elijo State Beaches, Downtown Cardiff, and Glen Park – via a new bikeway, making riding a bike a practical form of transportation for everyday travel. Kleinfelder supported the project as a subconsultant to Nasland Engineering, providing geotechnical and structural engineering services.

Other projects address aging infrastructure, such as the City of Chula Vista’s Willow Street Bridge (2020 APWA Honor award), which replaced a functionally obsolete, structurally deficient, and seismically vulnerable bridge. As the lead consultant and bridge designer, Kleinfelder worked with the City to provide the community a structurally sound replacement bridge that alleviated traffic, added alternative modes of travel along the bridge, and increased the safety of all bridge users.

With the community at the heart of most public works projects, safety has always been a driving factor for many infrastructure projects. The City of San Diego’s Balboa Avenue Corridor Improvements project (2020 APWA Honor award) improved pedestrian and bicyclist safety at four separate intersections along Balboa Avenue. Kleinfelder provided project management, civil design, and storm water support services for the project, which modified several medians to improve pedestrian crossings. Non-irrigated drought tolerant landscaping was also added to comply with the City’s recent mandate against using potable water for landscaping.

The reconstruction of Old Otay Mesa Road (2020 APWA Honor award) also focused on pedestrian and bicyclist safety, particularly the safety of San Ysidro students who primarily use the road. The City of San Diego invested $16 million to realign the road, add bike lanes and a sidewalk, and install safety features – retaining walls, guardrails, and lighting – along the road. Kleinfelder supported the project as a subconsultant to Nasland Engineering, providing structural plans and specifications for the design of tieback walls.

“Kleinfelder is proud to be recognized alongside our clients and teaming partners for these four award-winning projects,” said Kleinfelder Western Region Structures Manager Jim Frost. “Supporting public works projects is always very rewarding, as we’re able to see how the infrastructure directly benefits the communities we live and work in.”