RALEIGH - N.C. Department of
Transportation Secretary Gene Conti has awarded a contract to replace the Elmwood
Road bridge over Fourth Creek near Elmwood in Iredell County.
The $748,235 contract was awarded
to APAC -Atlantic Inc. of Greensboro. Work can begin as early as April 2 and be
completed by March 29, 2013.
The bridge was built in 1952 and is
deemed both functionally obsolete and structurally deficient. This does not
mean the bridge is unsafe, but there are elements of the bridge that need to be
monitored to maintain its structural integrity, and its layout no longer meets
current design standards for width, shoulders or rails. The new bridge will be
able to accommodate larger vehicles.
There will be an off-site detour route. Traffic traveling north will
take Elmwood Road to Old Salisbury Highway to U.S. 70 to Third Creek Church
Road to Phifer Road to Barnhill Road to Barry Oak Road. Southbound
traffic will reverse directions.
This is one of 29 contracts
totaling $167.9 million awarded by Conti for highway and bridge projects across
North Carolina. NCDOT awarded the contracts to the lowest bidders, as required
by state law. The bids received on the projects awarded came in about 7.5
percent, or about $13.5 million, below NCDOT estimates.
Since Gov. Bev Perdue took office
in January of 2009, NCDOT has awarded 540 highway contracts totaling $3.9
billion to ensure that all North Carolinians have access to jobs and
educational opportunities.
According to the Federal Highway
Administration, every $1 million spent on transportation creates 30 jobs, and
according to the construction industry, every dollar invested in transportation
generates $6 in economic impact.