Link-Belt RTC-80130 SII builds emergency-route bridge in California

The new crossing spans roughly 1,200 ft (365 m) over the south fork of the American River and replaces a timber bridge dating from 1939, which will be kept as a pedestrian crossing. Once open, the route will cut response times for emergency services heading into the surrounding forested areas of El Dorado County.

Reach decided the pick

Shimmick stationed the RTC-80130 SII on the structure’s north side, where the lift plan hinged on capacity at radius: the crane handled shoring beams of 7,500 lb (around 3.4 tonnes) at a 90 ft (27 m) radius.

“The reach of the RTC-80130 SII was perfect for the bridge’s north side.”

— Adam Almberg, construction manager, Shimmick

Getting there was a job in itself. The rough terrain crane travelled close to four hours through the Eldorado National Forest to reach the site, covering nearly five miles of dirt roads, switchbacks, steep grades and long descents under its own power. According to Almberg, most other cranes would have overheated on a similar approach.

“This crane handled nearly five miles of dirt roads and switchbacks on steep grades and long downhills. It did a great job traveling and handled better than most cranes.”

— Adam Almberg, construction manager, Shimmick

Batch plant tipped for removal

With the bridge deck complete, the crane’s work was not over. Shimmick roaded the RTC-80130 around 10 miles off-site to dismantle the temporary concrete batch plant that had supplied the deck surface and substructure pours. There the crane tipped the 78,000 lb (around 35 tonne) plant over for disassembly so it could be trucked away.

“There’s a lot of big pieces at the batch plant. Having the right machine for the job makes all the difference.”

— Adam Almberg, construction manager, Shimmick

Rough terrain credentials

The RTC-80130 SII sits at the top end of Link-Belt’s rough terrain range with a 130 US ton (118 tonne) rating, and the Mosquito Road job played to both halves of its name — long reach over the river gorge on one hand, and an off-road approach that would have stopped most wheeled cranes on the other.