When the Georgia Department of Transportation awarded statewide construction contracts earlier this month, a new method was used on several contracts to accelerate the replacement of twenty-five local bridges throughout the state.
The method, known as "bridge bundles," used five design-build contracts that each group four to six bridge replacements geographically, which allows the contractor to streamline delivery by combining design and construction activities for the bridges in their bundled contract. This concept is especially suitable in rural areas. The replacement bridges are valued at over $39.6 million.
“Design-build bridge bundles are an innovative and cost efficient way to repair and replace some of our aging local bridges,” Georgia DOT Commissioner Russell R. McMurry, P.E. said. “The process expedites delivery, minimizes public inconvenience, maximizes industry participation and allows us to get the best overall product for the lowest price.”
Northeast Georgia claimed nearly $8.1 million in awarded contracts to replace the following five bridges:
- Bridge on Carpenter Road over Coldwater Creek in Elbert County
- Bridge on Royston Highway over Pruitt Creek three miles north of Vanna in Hart County
- Bridge Currahee on Lane at North Fork Broad River in Stephens County
- Bridge on Chandler Bridge Road over North Oconee River in Jackson County
- Bridge on Old GA 138 at Big Flat Creek northeast of Walnut Gove in Walton County
