JEFFERSON CITY - The 35 bridge projects awarded at Thursday's Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission meeting brings to 50 the total number of bridge projects under contract as part of the state's Safe & Sound Bridge Improvement Program.
The initiative, the largest bridge improvement program in state history, will repair or replace 802 of Missouri's worst bridges in five years.
"We're pleased that within just a few months of launching the Safe & Sound program in September we are able to move ahead with 50 important bridge projects," Missouri Department of Transportation Director Pete Rahn said. "Missourians have told us they want their bridges fixed, and we're working to deliver those improvements as quickly as possible."
The 50 bridges now under contract are all rehabilitation projects, and at least 50 more will be put out for bids in the coming months. MoDOT expects to award 554 bridge replacements this spring as part of a single design-build package. Three teams are competing for the contract.
A complete list of all the bridges in the Safe & Sound program and other information can be found on the MoDOT Web site at www.modot.org/safeandsound.
Dave Nichols, MoDOT's director of program delivery, reported that bids on the projects awarded at the Jan. 8 commission meeting came in almost 18 percent under budget for a $9.2 million savings. So far in fiscal year 2009, MoDOT has awarded 144 projects at 9.4 percent under budget for a $34 million savings.
Editor's note: Soundbites on this topic can be found on the MoDOT newsroom at www.modot.org/newsroom.
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