Before work began on the reconstruction, a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) was developed and implemented on site to protect the Upper Mokelumne River and the North Fork of the Cosumnes River; both being high risk receiving watersheds. VSS International hired Tully Group to develop the SWPPP Plan and conduct SWPPP inspections on BMPs placed by VSS International.
Another discovery made during the preconstruction phase was that the sizable equipment used for the FDR-C, chip seal, and slurry seal operations along with the winding and narrow roads made it nearly impossible to consistently flag residents through working areas in a safe manner. Temporary road closures were used along with flagging operations to keep residents and workers safe throughout the construction area, per the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). Using radios, flaggers and other crew members were able to successfully hold traffic until it was safe to allow the traveling public through the area or allow traffic to use a detour to an adjacent road. Road closure applications were submitted to the county along with site-specific traffic control plans developed by Statewide Safety Systems.
An additional challenge that needed to be addressed during the preconstruction phase was developing a water supply to the project site. Due to the potential for water hammer with hydrants near the project site, VSS International developed a water supply using the Calaveras County bulk water card lock system and water trucks to haul water. This was essential to the success of the project.
After all BMPs were placed, traffic control plans were submitted, and road closure applications were turned in to the county, complete reconstruction of Jesus Maria Road could begin.
VSS International partnered with Pavement Recycling Systems (PRS) to perform the FDR-C on the existing roadway. The FDR-C portion of this project was originally due to start in August 2020, but due to cement shortages caused by the economic conditions of the time—with supply shortages and COVID-19 pandemic—the start date was delayed until September. Before FDR-C operations commenced, a mix design was submitted to the county to determine the optimal spread rate and pulverization depth for the FDR. The FDR-C of Jesus Maria Road started on the five-year anniversary of the Butte Fire. This was the fire that caused the road to be in its previous state of disrepair. Working in a dry area prone to fire danger, special precautions were made to ensure there would not be a repeat of the previous fire that burned over 70,000 acres in the area.
The entire FDR area was measured to be approximately 78,360 sq yd. The work consisted of spreading cement on existing asphalt surface at a rate determined by the mix design, mixing cement and water with existing asphalt and base to a depth of 9 in., followed by grading and final compaction. At the end of each week, a fog seal coat was applied to the FDR-C surface to prepare for the final cape seal process. The FDR-C process took 15 days to complete, meeting the predetermined schedule.
