SS9402C-CS 980507To:
From:
RE:
MEMORANDUM
FROM TI:IE
DEPARTMENT OF ENGINEERING
Mayor and City Council
Ken Griffin, P.E., Dir. of Engineering and Public Works ~'~
Traffic Control Plan for the reconstruction of the trench line on the south side of
Bethel Rd. from Grapevine Creek to Freeport Pkwy.
Date: May 7, 1998
For some time now the trench associated with the Bethel Road sewer line that was installed in early 1996 has been
failing. At best this is a nuisance to the vehicular traffic, at worst it is a potentially dangerous situation with cars
swerving into oncoming traffic to avoid failing pavement. It was and is the City's opinion that this is a
workmanship issue associated with the original contractor. However, the original contractor's attorney has
notified the City that their client has no responsibility for the condition of the roadway and they are not responsible
for the ongoing failures. That position is obviously something that the City may wish to pursue at some point in
the future, especially since this section of the roadway is still under the two-year maintenance period of the project.
My goal at this point is to insure the integrity of the roadway in the future. The City of Coppell has retained the
services of a geotechnical firm which has recommended that we remove at least 3 feet of the existing trench line,
put in a geo fabric and then recompact the 3 feet to 100% density. In essence, we will be attempting to create a
bridge over any other bad areas in the trench line. On May 4, 1998 there was a coordination meeting held with a
contractor, Dallas County, the geotechnical firm retained by the City and city staff concerning this project. It is
anticipated that the reconstruction of the trench line will be performed in three sections. The first section is from
south Coppell Road east to Grapevine Creek. The second section is from north Coppell Road west to Freeport
Parkway and the third section is between the two Coppell Roads. The importance of expediently working the
section between the two Coppell Roads has been conveyed to the contractor and they are sensitive to the adjacent
businesses.
One of the major issues associated with the removal and replacement of a portion of the backfill is the traffic
currently on the roadway. In late 1995, City Council approved a plan whereby the east bound traffic on Bethel
Road was rerouted south at either Royal Lane or Freeport Parkway to Southwestern Blvd. then back north on
Denton Tap Road to avoid the section of roadway between Freeport Parkway and Grapevine Creek. To insure an
expedient project, staff will again close down Bethel Road to east bound traffic between Freeport Parkway and
Denton Tap Road, with the appropriate rerouting down Freeport Parkway to Southwestern Blvd. and then back to
Denton Tap Road. The majority of the failures on the roadway have occurred east of Freeport Parkway. With the
closing of the south half of the roadway (east bound traffic), the contractor has indicated that it will take
approximately one month to perform the work. This is obviously assuming that we have the appropriate weather to
remove and replace the trench line. Without closing the roadway, as we previously did, it will be very difficult to
perform this work, especially in an expedient manner.
If you have any questions please contact Ken Griffin or Jim Witt.
cc: Jim Witt, City Manager
"CITY OF COPPELL ENGINEERING-EXCELLENCE B Y DESIGN"
RD.
SCALE: 1" : 2000'
LEGEND
PROPOSED DETDUR ROUTE
~i--. DIRECTION OF TRAVEL
· ND EAST BOUND TRAFFIC
ON BETHEL ROAD FROM
FREEPORT PARKWAY TD
DENTON TAP ROAD.
WESTBDUND TRAFFIC ONLY.