September Commission Wrap-Up: County bridge project selected for federal grant;
$45 million in contracts awarded
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PR# 19-035
Highlights of the Oklahoma Transportation Commission’s Tuesday, Sept. 3, meeting include an update on the Oklahoma Department of Transportation’s Eight-year Construction Work Plan, a briefing on the department’s ongoing effort to develop the state’s first public transit plan with service providers and stakeholders and announcement of a federal grant for an innovative county bridge project.
Secretary of Transportation and ODOT Executive Director Tim Gatz gave an update on the ongoing process of rebalancing the agency’s Eight-year Plan, which includes reprioritizing and adding highway projects based on needs and available state and federal funding. Transportation commissioners, together with the department’s field division engineers, have been reviewing proposed projects in their areas for changes in scope and cost estimates to create a balanced statewide plan, which is expected to be brought to the commission for approval in October.
Gatz also noted that ODOT is bringing the state’s public transit providers and stakeholders together in September to identify shared goals, objectives and performance metrics for the first Oklahoma Public Transit Policy Plan and to discuss how the department’s new Office of Mobility and the Public Transit can help address the identified needs.
Commission members were notified that the U.S. Department of Transportation recently awarded a $3.5 million Competitive Highway Bridge Program grant for a proposal submitted by ODOT in partnership with Grant County to replace 34 structurally deficient county bridges in a single project. They also highlighted two special agency accomplishments; An aerial photograph taken by ODOT of the SkyDance bridge over the I-40 Crosstown in Oklahoma City recently received top honors from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ Standing Committee on Transportation Communications, and a department publication about the history of Red River crossings between Oklahoma and Texas earned national recognition from the Legislative Research Librarians committee of the National Conference of State Legislatures.
The commission approved a $1.5 million engineering contract to design modifications to the I-35 service roads between Memorial Rd. and US-77/SH-66/2nd St. in Edmond to improve safety and traffic flow. The City of Edmond is partnering on design and the construction, which is scheduled to go to bid in Federal Fiscal Year 2026. Commissioners also voted to award a nearly $10 million contract to reconstruct and add paved shoulders to four miles of SH-33/SH-3 near Watonga and a $1.5 million contract for preventative maintenance work on several I-44, I-244 and US-75 bridges in Tulsa.
Commissioners voted to award 14 contracts totaling nearly $45 million to improve highways, roads and bridges in 11 counties. Contracts were awarded for projects in Blaine, Creek, Custer, Ellis, Grady, Oklahoma, Pittsburg, Sequoyah, Tillman, Tulsa and Washington counties. A list of all awarded contracts can be found by visiting www.odot.org/contracts, selecting the August 2019 AM letting, clicking Go, then Award.
The nine-member Oklahoma Transportation Commission, appointed by the governor and legislative leadership to oversee the state’s transportation development, awards contracts every month for road and bridge construction. The commission’s next meeting is scheduled for 11 a.m. Monday, Oct. 14, which is Columbus Day, but state offices will be open. Contracts, bid information, the commission’s monthly agenda and project details can be viewed at www.odot.org.
At its Tuesday, Sept. 3, meeting, the Oklahoma Transportation Commission highlighted an aerial photograph taken by ODOT of the SkyDance bridge over the I-40 Crosstown in Oklahoma City glowing orange in honor of Work Zone Safety Awareness. It recently received top honors from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ Standing Committee on Transportation Communications.
At its Tuesday, Sept. 3, meeting, members of the Oklahoma Transportation Commission learned that Oklahoma was selected to receive a $3.5 million Competitive Highway Bridge Program grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The grant proposal submitted by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation in partnership with Grant County will use the federal funding to help replace 34 structurally deficient county bridges in a single project. Many of the bridges to be replaced are old wooden structures, including the bridge on East 0270 Rd. near Pond Creek, pictured here.
(Editors and News Directors: For more information, call the ODOT Media and Public Relations Division at 405-521-6000.)
