In 2019, the Colorado Department of Transportation (DOT) was faced with a mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) bridge abutment failing catastrophically, closing US 36 between Denver and Boulder. The geotechnical design subconsultants suggested the use of geofoam blocks to fast-track theproject and get the embankment reconstructed prior to winter. “Geofoam: Colorado’s Innovative Answer to an Emergency Highway Repair,” by Stephen Harelson, details how TRB’s National Cooperative Highway Research Program rese…