Constraints and Criteria

•  Passes 100-year design flow​

•  Follows US Forest Service standards and specifications ​

• The designed structure must not cause erosion of the surrounding channel over time.

•  The structure must consider the HL-93 design vehicle in terms of speed, lane width, curve widening, traffic, and maintenance. 

• Stay within a budget of $200,000 

• Maintain the mean annual flow velocity of the reference reach through the design structure.

• Construction materials easily transported ​

• Minimize construction time and impact to natural resources 

• Final design must be visually appealing  

• Final design should last at least 75 years 

• USFS Stream Simulation Design Practices

• US Department of Transportation Culvert Design for AOP

• US Fish and Wildlife Service Culvert Design Guidelines for Ecological Function

• Federal Highway Administration’s Standard Specifications for Construction of Roads and Bridges on Federal Highway Projects (FP-14) 

• USFS  7709.56 Transportation Structures Handbook and the FSSS

• Contech Engineered Solutions Structural Plate Design Guide 8th Edition

• American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) LRFD Bridge Design Specifications 

Forest Service Stream-Simulation Working Group. (2008). STREAM SIMULATION: An ecological approach to providing passage for aquatic organisms at road-stream crossings. San Dimas, CA: United States Department of Agriculture 

Kilgore, R., Bergendahl, B. & Hotchkiss, R. (2010). Culvert design for aquatic organism passage. Hydraulic Engineering Circular No. 26, First Edition. Denver, Colorado: U.S. Department of Transportation. Retrieved from https://www.spa.usace.army.mil/Portals/16/docs/civilworks/regulatory/Stream%20Information%20and%20Management/FHA%20Culvert%20Design%20for%20Aquatic%20Organism%20Passage.pdf   

Valentine, K., & Hanson, H. (2024). Culvert design guidelines for ecological function: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Retrieved from https://www.fws.gov/alaska-culvert-design-guidelines#_Toc75597643  

U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. (2014). Standard specifications for construction of roads and bridges on federal highway projects (FP-14). Retrieved from https://highways.dot.gov/federal-lands/specs/fp-14.pdf  

Smith, G., 7709.56b Transportation structures handbook (2014). Washington DC: US Forest Service . Retrieved from https://www.fs.usda.gov/cgi-bin/Directives/get_dirs/fsh?7709.56b 

Structural Plate Design Guide 8th edition. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.conteches.com/media/qujfuekl/spdg.pdf 

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. (2024). Load and resistance factor design (LRFD) bridge design specifications (10th ed.). Retrieved from https://aashtojournal.transportation.org/aashto-issues-10th-lrfd-bridge-design-spec-edition/