TSU Pays Tribute to the United States Highway System and the Alumni Who Have Contributed to its History
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Written by Krista Shields

According to Merritt, he foresees the continued need for TSU engineers in the transportation industry. Though he believes that the single biggest achievement caused by the creation and constructionof the Interstate System would be in how significantly it has improved the life of every American, he notes there are still challenges that lie ahead. These challenges will require design-oriented engineers with practical experience, like those who graduate from TSU.

According to Pat Barry, CE ’77, one of those challenges will be the timely maintenance and rehabilitation of the current assets of the system in more rural areas. He also notes the need in urban areas across the country for reduced congestion.

“The challenge is to reduce congestion by constructing new highways in new corridors, or adding lanes in the existing corridors,” Barry said. “The funding required for these projects can be enormous, which may be the biggest challenge.”

Barry has worked for A.L. Blades & Sons Inc. in central New York and Northern Pennsylvania for nearly 30 years. Now vice president of structures, Barry is in charge of acquiring new work (their biggest customer is the NYDOT), managing projects, and designing detour bridges, cofferdams, shoring, and erection and demolition plans.

We have been very much involved in recent years with maintenance and rehabilitation projects on the Interstate Highways that pass through our area, particularly I-86 and I-390,” said Barry. “Typically, these projects include the rubblization of the existing concrete pavement followed by a hot mix asphalt overlay, with rehabilitation to varying degrees of the bridges and other structures. We also recently completed a pair of bridges on the new I-99 corridor in Pennsylvania that is rapidly heading north into New York.”

Barry says that TSU did more than provide him with the necessary background in engineering. TSU was a major factor in his adult development.

“Professors Guilford, Seeley, Rowley, Schwenk, Lin, and Raghu provided sound instruction in civil engineering that gave us a well-rounded foundation from which to build,” added Barry.“Further, from Alwood Hall to the TKE house, from calculus, chemistry, and physics to English composition and effective speaking, the years that I spent in Angola helped to make me what I am today, as a professional and a civic-minded citizen.”

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