JR Engineering provided civil design services for the design associated with the realignment of the Bull Canal to accommodate Washington Street widening and the reconfiguration of the 152nd Avenue Intersection.  The design was required to meet the stringent conveyance, maintenance, and hydraulic criteria established by the canal’s management company.  The Farmers Reservoir and Irrigation Company (FRICO) managed the canal.

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JR’s ability to successfully negotiate with both the City of Thornton and FRICO regarding seepage and design criteria lead to the success of this project.

The realignment of the nearly 1,100-foot segment of the Bull Canal was selected using a multi-tiered alternative analysis using input from numerous entities and stakeholders.  The selected alternative replaced outdated bridge structures and utilized a single box structure with radial segments running below the southbound lanes of Washington Street.

 Ditch maintenance and ditch rider access where critical requirements for the design of the structure.

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JR’s design implemented stilling areas and access locations to address these requirements.

Private irrigation diversion structures are located within the realigned portion of the canal.  To make sure that the diversions rates were maintained, the proposed channel geometry was analyzed with the hydraulics.  The system hydraulics was modeled and field calibrated under the preconstruction conditions to verify that the proposed design matched the flow depth and velocity parameters.