$140 million contract awarded for I-85 HOT lane extension
And the winner is… C.W. Matthews. (Oh, and thousands of Northeast Atlanta commuters.)
A contract for $139.6 million was awarded Tuesday to the Marietta-based road contractor to design and build a 10-mile extension of the existing I-85 HOT lane in Gwinnett County, the Georgia Department of Transportation announced. That means drivers will be able to bypass congestion on the heavily traveled northeast Atlanta corridor for a far longer stretch.
The project involves construction of a single toll lane in each direction between Old Peachtree Road and Hamilton Mill Road.
The toll lane extension is scheduled to open in 2018.
C.W. Matthews submitted the lowest-priced bid and was scored highest in a best value comparison that also took into account the technical aspects of the design. Two other design-build teams, Lane Construction/Infrastructure Consulting & Engineering and E.R. Snell/Moreland Altobelli, priced their proposals at $142 million and $154.8 million respectively.
The I-85 express lane extension is one of three major toll lane projects coming soon to metro Atlanta. The other two are:
- Northwest Corridor: 30 miles of new lanes along I-75 from Akers Mill Road to Hickory Grove Road and along I-575 from I-75 to Sixes Road. Construction is ongoing, with opening in spring or summer 2018. Cost: $834 million.
- I-75 South Metro Express Lanes: 12 miles of two new barrier-separated, reversible lanes within the I-75 median from McDonough Road to Stockbridge Highway. Construction is under way, with the lanes projected to open in winter 2017. Cost: $221 million.
