WILMINGTON – The N.C. Department of
Transportation has awarded a $15.8 million contract for bridge preservation
work, including the replacement of 28 spans, on the N.C. 133 Bridge over the
Intracoastal Waterway at Oak Island. It will give the bridge a new surface and
replace the existing barrier rail.
The contract awarded to Sloan Construction of Duncan, South
Carolina also calls for improvements on a short stretch of N.C. 133 by the
bridge, as well as 5.2 miles on East Oak Island Drive.
Work on this project can begin as soon as June 25 and is scheduled
to be completed by June 2019. It will require a maximum six-month closure of the
bridge from mid-October 2018 after the U.S. Open King Mackerel Fishing
Tournament until mid-April 2019 before the Easter holiday. The contractor can
earn an incentive bonus for every day before that April date that the bridge is
re-opened.
Traffic will be detoured to the N.C. 906 (EF Middleton Boulevard)
Bridge for island access during the six-month closure.
Lane closures should be expected at other times during the project.
However, because of heavy beach traffic in the area, the contractor will not be
allowed to close a lane on N.C. 133 or East Oak Island Drive between 5 a.m. and
9 p.m. on Monday thru Thursday, or from 5 a.m. Friday until 9 p.m. Sunday from
the week before Memorial Day to the week after Labor Day.
The rest of the year, no lane closures are allowed between 6 and 9
a.m. and 4 and 7 p.m. on Monday thru Thursday or between 6 a.m. on Friday and 7
p.m. on Sunday.
Lane closures will also not be allowed during holiday weekends or
special events such as the King Mackerel Tournament the first weekend in
October.
This was one of 18 road, rail and bridge contracts recently awarded
by the N.C. Department of Transportation. Per state law they went to the lowest
qualified bidder for each project. The contracts are worth $144.4 million.