Mexico's Bridges: Tecoman Overcrossings

Continuing northeast along the Colima - Manzanillo Highway (Route 200) is an interchange to the nearby town of Tecoman, which includes a two span and and a three span overcrossing.

These bridges are interesting because the abutments, including the stem walls, are constructed from mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) panels. I don't think we have ever used an MSE wall to support a bridge superstructure in California. It seems to be doing a good job though, especially when you consider the bridges were about 15 km from the epicenter of the 2003 M8 Colima Earthquake.

Also, I like how the area around the interchange has been landscaped with palm trees, bougainvillea, and shrubbery. The State of Colima does a nice job of maintaining their highways.

However, I wonder how effective the sign on the outside of the bridgerail 'SI TOMA NO MANEJE' (don't drink and drive) is at preventing drunk driving? It may be too late to stop someone who is already driving, but it may possibly give them pause from continuing to drink while they drive.

Mexico's Bridges: Tecoman Overcrossings by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.