On the recently constructed Missouri Riverfront Trail in Platte County, trail users are reconnecting to the river by reusing an existing levee maintenance road as a trail. TranSystems provided trail and structural engineering services for the 3.5-mile trail, which included underpasses at two major highways and a 134-foot pedestrian bridge over Burlington Creek. This segment is an important connection to two existing systems, and was the first trail to be allowed on top of a Corps of Engineers levee in the Kansas City region.
“The Riverfront Trail is a natural for Platte County” commented First District Commissioner Kathy Dusenbery. “It combines two elements of our park plan that citizens often tell us is most important to them, providing more walking paths and protecting open space along our streams and rivers. This is just a great thing for us to have.”
The trail won an award for the complexity and innovation displayed by the engineering, but TranSystems' observation was just as complex. Observers coordinated with US Army Corps of Engineers and the local Levee District representative to meet the project and Levee safety requirements. Weather and field conditions warranted responsive field changes to allow the contractor to minimize the time spent in this environmentally sensitive area.
TranSystems was recognized by ACEC of Missouri receiving the 2010 Grand Award, the American Society of Landscape Architects (Prairie Gateway Chapter) with the Planning and Analysis Award, and the National Association of Counties Achievement Award for Innovative County Government Program.