McCarthy Erects Pedestrian Bridges for Texaco/ Havoline Grand Prix of Houston

23 September 1999

McCarthy Erects Pedestrian Bridges for Texaco/ Havoline Grand Prix of Houston

    DALLAS--(AutomotiveWire)--Sept. 22, 1999--McCarthy will erect four structural steel pedestrian bridges for the Second Annual Texaco/Havoline Grand Prix of Houston.
    Following the event scheduled to take place September 24-26, McCarthy will dismantle the bridges.
    This is McCarthy's second contract with the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) event. For the inaugural race last year, McCarthy erected and dismantled the race course safety barrier system.
    According to Peter Kozura, director of operations for the Texaco/Havoline Grand Prix, "The pedestrian bridges will be put in place just days before the race. McCarthy's extensive experience with bridge construction and their familiarity with the event will help them meet this quick timetable. We are confident that their team will meet all deadlines."
    The structural steel bridges will be 11 feet by 80 feet and span 50 feet across downtown traffic lanes. Located on west, north and east sides of the course, these temporary bridges will be used by pedestrians to access the grandstand, convention center and other viewing areas.
    McCarthy Project Director Tony Stehling explains, "Transporting truss pieces through the downtown traffic and positioning them without disrupting the flow of traffic is our main challenge. Throughout the project, we will carefully coordinate traffic to minimize disruption to area motorists."
    The truss of each pedestrian bridge will be dismantled immediately following the race to prevent disrupting traffic. Turner, Collie and Braden of Houston served as design consultants on the project.
    The 1999 Texaco/Havoline Grand Prix of Houston is conducted by CART as part of the FedEx Championship Series. More than 115,000 spectators are expected to attend the race, which will be televised live on ABC and rebroadcast by ESPN to 190 countries. The course was designed by the Texaco/Havoline Grand Prix of Houston, in conjunction with CART and the City of Houston.
    CART is the sanctioning organization for the FedEx Championship Series and the only major race series on the New York Stock Exchange.
    McCarthy is the nation's 22nd largest domestic builder (Engineering News-Record, May 1999). The firm offers general contracting, construction management and design/build services for bridges, highways and parking structures; advanced technology, healthcare, educational, office, retail and mixed-use facilities. In addition to Dallas, the firm has offices in Phoenix, Ariz.; Las Vegas, Nev.; St. Louis, Mo.; Newport Beach, San Francisco and Sacramento, Calif.; Portland, Ore.; Seattle, Wash.; and a subsidiary, Constructora McCarthy de Mexico in Mexico City.
    Web site: www.mccarthy.com