City staff advance second-bridge design, recommend roundabouts at new intersections

Second Bridge Project Progress Report: Lake Havasu City Council heard a multi-agency update Tuesday on the second-bridge design, including recommended roundabouts for the bridge’s London Bridge Road and McCulloch intersections and a near-term permitting timeline.

City project manager Jason Hart briefed the council on design choices that reduced the bridge span and shortened the alignment, noting an effort to keep abutments perpendicular to the channel to control costs. “Once we submit that 30% submittal to [the U.S.] Coast Guard, we are not allowed to change the roadway and bridge alignment,” Hart said, explaining why the team sought early agreement with state agencies.

Why it matters: consultants told council that shorter spans lower structural costs by millions, and that intersection control choices carry safety, operations and life‑cycle cost implications. Lindsey Van Parris, a traffic engineer on the design team, summarized an intersection control evaluation that compared conventional traffic signals and roundabouts at both new intersections and recommended roundabouts on safety and operational grounds.

The evaluation cited national and state studies showing large reductions in severe crashes at roundabouts. Van Parris said roundabouts reduce vehicle‑vehicle conflict points and shorten pedestrian crossing distances, and presented a benefit‑cost view that also accounted for lifecycle maintenance and collision costs. Her team’s scoring put roundabout alternatives well ahead of signals for both London Bridge Road and McCulloch Road in the study’s design year (2045) traffic projections.

Design, permitting and agency coordination: staff reported a recent acceptance letter from Arizona State Parks on the bridge and roadway alignment; State Lands review was described as ‘‘forthcoming’’ and expected this week. Hart said the project team is targeting a 30% design submittal to the U.S. Coast Guard by August 2025. The Coast Guard’s review window may take months; once the 30% packet is submitted the alignment is effectively fixed for permitting.

Construction management and cost input: the city’s construction manager at risk, AIMS Construction, has been providing cost estimates and reviewed structural alternatives; Scott Jones of AIMS told the council that shortening the bridge has produced multi‑million‑dollar reductions in deck and girder costs. Hart and the consultant team also described coordination with State Parks to reduce impacts to the park’s parking and to preserve future development parcels on the island side.

Public comment and agency perspective: Dan Roddy, Western Region Manager for Arizona State Parks, said the agency supports the presented alignment but noted that agreement language and formal signatures remain to be negotiated. Roddy warned there is ‘‘a lot of work left to do’’ before the city and the state finalize the required authorizations.

What the council directed: staff said they will continue design to the 30% milestone and complete required coordination with State Parks and State Lands; the council provided general support for the team’s approach and for the consultants’ roundabout recommendation while noting the need for ongoing public outreach on the driver experience and local business impacts.

Next steps: staff will advance the 30% package for Coast Guard permitting, continue negotiations with State Lands and State Parks on right‑of‑way terms, refine cost estimates with the CMAR, and return to the council with updates. The city team said it will provide additional visualizations and driver‑experience materials to support public outreach.

Ending: The council received the report as an informational progress update; no ordinance or construction authorization was approved at the meeting.