MSE Wall Global Stability and Lesson Learned

A highway bridge spanning an at-grade railroad right-of-way was designed using two MSE wall supported abutments. The earthwork included the soil approach embankment and the MSE wall sand backfill. Steel H-piles were inserted through the backfill in corrugated metal pipes and then driven to the desired depth to support the bridge abutments. Before construction of the MSE walls, rammed aggregate piers (RAPs) were installed beneath each MSE wall and backfill to reduce total and differential settlements and increase bearing capacity of the weak foundation soils. The west MSE wall and approach embankment did not perform well and had to be demolished and re-constructed but the east wall performed well. Field settlement and slope inclinometer data show that the west MSE wall moved laterally due to the weak foundation soils. This paper discusses the cause of the lateral wall movements and presents recommendations for the design of future MSE walls founded on RAPs.