Barsby Street culvert to be replaced

The next county of San Diego contract to repair and replace culverts in unincorporated San Diego County will include a Barsby Street culvert.

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0, June 27, to authorize the advertisement for bid and subsequent award of a contract to replace and repair up to 22 culverts. The contract is structured to include a base bid consisting of 17 culverts and two additive alternatives which can be added to the contract if funding permits and would replace up to five culverts. The base bid includes the replacement of the Barsby Street culvert in Bonsall.

“Strong infrastructure is the key to safe and thriving communities,” Supervisor Bill Horn said. “This is another example of the county taking care of business and protecting our roads from costly repairs in the future.”

The estimated $1.4 million cost includes contingencies. Highway User Tax Account revenue derived from the sales tax on gasoline will fund $1,350,000 and a prior-year San Diego County Flood Control District balance will account for the other $50,000.

The county’s Department of Public Works maintains more than 18,000 drainage facilities including more than 14,000 culverts. Stormwater crews inspect all county-maintained culverts on a cyclical basis and prioritize them for rehabilitation or replacement. Field engineering staff members inspect the culverts nearing the end of their service life to determine whether replacing the culverts or rehabilitating them with new lining would be the more preferable option.

Lining a culvert involves the installation of an internal sleeve. Lining methods include cure-in-place pipe which utilizes resin-impregnated fabric inserted into the existing culvert, slip lining insertion of solid wall surface into the existing culvert, and insertion of spiral-wound pipe which will expand and line the culvert. The internal sleeve restores the pipe’s structural integrity while reducing excavation and thus minimizing traffic impacts.

Repair of holes and the restoration of capacity without replacing the culvert can also be accomplished by invert paving which consists of preparing the invert surface area, or the bottom of the culvert, to receive concrete, installing bar reinforcement and anchorage devices, and paving the inverted area with concrete on the bottom of the pipe to fill existing holes and restore it to a structurally sound pipe floor. If the culvert is damaged beyond economical repair, a culvert replacement is more appropriate than rehabilitation, and the existing culvert is removed with a new one being installed.

The Barsby Street culvert is between Tyhaven Drive and an unnamed private road to the west. The existing corrugated metal pipe culvert measuring 21 inches by 15 inches will be replaced by a reinforced concrete pipe culvert 23 inches by 14 inches.

The culvert repair and replacement on a countywide basis is scheduled to begin in summer 2018 and be complete by winter 2019. Traffic control measures will be implemented during the construction to limit impacts to community members and other travelers.