November Commission Wrap-Up: Governor praises award-winning I-235 construction in Oklahoma City;
Willis bridge contract approved; more than $80 million in construction contracts awarded
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 7, 2018
PR# 18-045
Highlights of the Oklahoma Transportation Commission’s Monday, Nov. 5, meeting included a visit from Gov. Mary Fallin for an update on I-235 construction in Oklahoma City and a review of awards won by the massive project. Contracts were awarded for replacement of the US-377/SH-99 Willis bridge in Marshall County, SH-3 resurfacing in Canadian County and I-44 resurfacing in Tulsa County.
Oklahoma Department of Transportation Executive Director Mike Patterson welcomed Gov. Fallin to the commission meeting and provided an update on the current phase of I-235 reconstruction. Fallin and Patterson commented on completion of the latest phase of widening I-235 between N. 36th St. and I-44, which opened to traffic last weekend.
Gov. Fallin and Patterson spoke at length about the efficiency of the project, which contractor Allen Contracting, Inc., completed about a year early. The effort to improve the I-235 corridor in north Oklahoma City has been a lengthy process.
“This section of I-235 has been in need of reconstruction and widening for a decades and now we’re finally at the point that these critical improvements can be delivered,” Patterson said. “ODOT is grateful to the traveling public for its patience as we near the conclusion of years of work on I-235.”
A highlight of the latest construction phase was movement of the massive BNSF railroad bridge into place over I-235 in January. The bridge consists of two 45-foot-tall spans totaling nearly 600 feet in length and weighing about four million pounds.
At $88 million, the latest phase of reconstruction of I-235 was the largest dollar-amount highway contract awarded to date in state history, which included financial incentives for early completion and an earlier preparation project to resurface I-235. The project also included significant hydraulics improvements in the area, with installation of more than 30 drainage structures to handle heavy rainfall and address flooding in the vicinity.
The opening of this segment will provide significant relief to motorists until spring 2019 when the next phase of construction on the corridor is scheduled to begin. This phase will be an estimated $80 million project to reconstruct and widen I-235 at the I-44 interchange itself.
Patterson also highlighted the accolades earned by the I-235 project, including a first place award in the Best Highway/Bridge Project category of the Engineering News-Record’s Regional Best Projects for 2018 for the south region including Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas. The project will compete with 17 other regional winners for the publication’s Best of the Best award, which will be announced early next year. The department’s public outreach efforts during the project earned a first place award from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in the 2018 Skills Contest. In addition, ODOT’s efforts also received an honorable mention in the 2018 UpperCase Awards from the Public Relations Society of America-Oklahoma City Chapter.
The longest bridge maintained by ODOT will be replaced thanks to action by the commission to award a more than $43 million construction contract. Replacement of the US-377/SH-99 Willis bridge over Lake Texoma in Marshall County is estimated to take more than two years to complete. Construction of this bridge between Oklahoma and Texas is being funded jointly by ODOT and the Texas Department of Transportation.
The Commission also awarded a $4.2 million contract to repave more than six miles of SH-3 near Piedmont in Canadian County and a $3.5 million contract to resurface almost two miles of I-44 east of I-244 in Tulsa.
Altogether, commissioners voted to award 23 contracts totaling more than $80 million to improve highways, roads and bridges in 19 counties. Contracts were awarded for projects in Bryan, Caddo, Canadian, Carter, Choctaw, Cleveland, Comanche, Delaware, Grady, Marshall, Muskogee, Okmulgee, Ottawa, Payne, Pittsburg, Pottawatomie, Seminole, Sequoyah and Tulsa counties.
A list of all awarded contracts can be found by visiting www.odot.org/contracts, selecting the October 2018 letting, clicking Go, then Award.
The eight-member Transportation Commission, appointed by the governor 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, Dec. 3.
Contracts, bid information, the commission’s monthly agenda and project details can be viewed at www.odot.org.
I-235 project in Oklahoma City earns award from engineering publication
Gov. Mary Fallin joined members of the Oklahoma Transportation Commission at their Monday, Nov. 5 meeting to hear an update on reconstruction of I-235 in Oklahoma City. They learned that the project recently earned a first place award in the Best Highway/Bridge Project category of the Engineering News-Record’s Regional Best Projects for 2018. Pictured from left are District Four Transportation Commissioner Greg Love, Benham Senior Project Manager Sue Tryon, Allen Contracting owner Jeff Allen, Oklahoma Department of Transportation Division Four Urban Construction and Maintenance Engineer Trenton January, ODOT Project Manager Whitney Pogue, ODOT Bridge Division Engineer Steve Jacobi, Fallin, ODOT Edmond Resident Engineer Tom Hubbard, Transportation Commission Chairman David Burrage and ODOT Executive Director and Secretary of Transportation Mike Patterson.
I-235 reconstruction in Oklahoma City earns engineering publication award
At their Monday, Nov. 5 meeting, members of the Oklahoma Transportation Commission learned that the Oklahoma Department of Transportation’s effort to reconstruct and widen I-235 north of N. 36th St. in Oklahoma City has earned several awards, including a first place award in the Best Highway/Bridge Project category of the Engineering News-Record’s Regional Best Projects for 2018
Longest state-maintained bridge to be replaced
The Willis bridge, a 58-year-old, mile-long bridge on US-377/SH-99 connecting Marshall County, Okla., with Grayson County, Texas, will be replaced under a $43 million contract awarded by the Oklahoma Transportation Commission at its Monday, Nov. 5 meeting. The cost of the project will be shared by Oklahoma and Texas. The existing bridge will remain open to traffic during construction.
(Editors and News Directors: For questions, please call the ODOT Media & Public Relations Division at 405-521-6000.)
