Bennington Bypass ahead of schedule
Toolbox
By PATRICK McARDLE STAFF WRITER - Published: July 19, 2009
BENNINGTON — With only one contract to be put out to bid, the northern leg of the Bennington Bypass is moving toward completion on time and under its projected cost, according to the Vermont Agency of Transportation's bypass project manager James Harris.
Rep. Timothy Corcoran II, D-Bennington, who is a member of the House Transportation Committee, said he had been informed that the construction work was now ahead of schedule.
"They're definitely making good time on that construction, there's no doubt about that," he said.
According to Harris, the northern leg could be open by the end of 2011 but it's more likely to open in the first half of 2012.
"It appears from what I've seen and talking to the resident engineer, that at least the (J.A.) McDonald (of Lyndon Center) contract is ahead of schedule but as Yogi Berra once said, 'It ain't over 'til it's over,' and they could run into some problems. They have until October 2010 to complete their part of the project," he said.
Contractors have submitted "very competitive or aggressive bids," Harris said, which have all been for less than the state's engineers estimated.
"From that perspective, I would guess you would say we're under budget," he said.
Harris said the northern leg had been divided into four contracts with the most recent awarded this spring.
The contract, which builds two bridges over the Roaring Branch, an embankment to bring ramps down to intersect with Route 9 and makes improvements east and west of Route 9 to accommodate that intersection, was awarded to Kubricky Construction Corp., of Glens Falls, N.Y., for about $15.7 million. There were four bidders on the project.
Kubricky will also be responsible for the final paving of the northern leg. Harris said engineers had learned from their experiences with the western leg of the bypass.
"What we wanted to avoid was what appeared to happen when we did the western segment. Some of the segments were completed so far in advance of the highway being open, especially over in New York, that when we opened it, it almost looked like old pavement," he said.
Kubricky was awarded most of the contracts that built the western segment of the bypass, which opened to traffic in 2004.
The last contract, which will build the interchange between Route 7 and the bypass and the ramps in and out from the welcome center, is scheduled to be put out for bid in the spring.
Harris is preparing an application for money from the federal stimulus package that would pay for that final contract.
Agency of Transportation spokesman John Zicconi said that while the state had already set aside the money for the northern leg of the bypass, a successful application for federal funding would give the state up to $20 million that could be spent in other places.
"The more money we have, the more good we can do statewide," he said.
Harris said Kubricky was already at work on their part of the project, demolishing homes with driveways that presented a safety concern because they intersected with the road being built as part of the northern leg.
The third contract, awarded to Pike Industries, which has its Vermont headquarters in Barre, has been underway since spring 2008 so Harris said most of the construction that residents will see this summer will be part of the latest contract.
The welcome center is expected to be part of the northern leg of the bypass but it will be built by the Vermont Department of Buildings and General Services and funded by a federal earmark.
Corcoran said he appreciated the commitment from the administration of Gov. James Douglas to the northern leg of the bypass and said he hoped that would continue until the third and final leg, the southern segment, was built.
patrick.mcardle@rutlandherald.com
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