The WIS 130 Lone Rock Wisconsin River Bridges project replaced three structurally deficient, 80-plus-year-old steel truss bridges with two prestressed, multi-span concrete girder bridges spanning approximately 1,000 feet each over both channels of the Wisconsin River south of Lone Rock, Wis. Delivered as WisDOT’s first design-build initiative, the project saved the state more than $2.5 million in upfront costs and two years on its program schedule.
Construction presented extraordinary challenges. The north bridge required cofferdam rings at two piers due to shallow rock, while the south abutment demanded an elaborate temporary shoring system with tiebacks, pre-boring into rock and a six-stage backfilling sequence—among the most complex substructure work many involved had encountered in their careers.
Environmental constraints governing bats, frogs, mussels, hawks and swallows required strict construction windows throughout.
Through multiple Alternate Technical Concepts, the design-build team eliminated 15 piers across both structures, generating more than $2.3 million in cost savings. The team also realigned a dangerous T-intersection with a long history of deadly crashes and opened the full project five weeks ahead of the contract milestone date.
The $37.1 million project concluded with construction of an interpretive exhibit commemorating the history of the old bridges and the Lone Rock geological formation.
Project Essentials
- Location: Lone Rock
- Cost: $37,112,208
- Complete: June 2025
- Owner/Developer: Wisconsin Department of Transportation
- Architect: SRF Consulting Group
- Engineers: SRF Consulting Group, EXP, HNTB
- General Contractor: Kraemer North America
- Submitting Company: Kraemer North America
- Subcontractors: American Engineering Testing, Arbor Green, Augelli Concrete & Excavating, Con-Cor Co., D.L. Gasser Construction, Eide Painting & Sandblasting, Forward Traffic & Marking, Gestra Engineering, Greeley Signs & Graphics, Hoffman Construction, Interstate Tree (Interstate Clearing & Construction), Kapur & Associates, Midwest Drilled Foundations & Engineering, Red Arrow Electric, Revelation PR, Stantec, TNT Rebar, Underwater Inspectors, Veit & Co.