US 6 Eagle River Bridge Project Completed Under Budget
EAGLE COUNTY – Last week, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) completed all work on the new Eagle River Bridge on US 6, located one mile east of the roundabout at Eby Creek Road in Eagle. Thanks to the outstanding efforts of the contractor and crew, the project not only finished ahead of schedule, but also finished under budget. Instead of purchasing materials for the new road base, the contractor was able to recycle the existing materials to save approximately $225,000.
“We’re thankful to the community for their support throughout the construction for the new bridge, and also to the contractor for relentless efforts made to minimize interruptions to the community during construction,” said CDOT engineer Martha Miller. “Crews worked tirelessly last fall to take advantage of cooperative weather, which allowed the project to finish weeks ahead of schedule this spring, and constantly evaluated project processes in order to save a substantial amount of money.”
To celebrate the completion of the new bridge, a ribbon cutting ceremony will be held tomorrow, Wednesday, May 16 at 1 p.m. at the site of the new bridge. Members of the public are welcome to attend.
The project was contracted to Colorado-based CEI for $ 2.9 million. The original bridge, which was built in 1933, was rated in poor condition and had outlived its useful lifespan. A new bridge was built with wider lanes, including a third lane to better accommodate turns into and out of Nogal Road, which intersects US 6 north of the bridge location. The extended turn lanes at Nogal Road and the new bridge alignment address current standards and improve safety.
Replacement of the US 6 Eagle River Bridge was funded through the Colorado Bridge Enterprise, a government-owned business entity within CDOT. The Colorado General assembly created the statewide Bridge Enterprise via Senate Bill 09-108, also known as FASTER (Funding Advancements for Surface Treatment and Economic Recovery www.coloradodot.info/projects/faster). The purpose of the Bridge Enterprise is to complete designated bridge projects that involve the financing, repair, reconstruction and replacement of bridges designated as structurally deficient or functionally obsolete, and rated “poor” by CDOT.
On October 4, 2011 the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) officially launched a new website to track the status of Colorado’s poor bridges as they are being planned, designed and constructed through the Colorado Bridge Enterprise (CBE). Visit http://www.coloradodot.info/programs/BridgeEnterprise.
CDOT would like to remind motorists to obey all road signs and flaggers, and to drive Slow for the Cone Zone. To receive updates about road conditions in the area, visit www.coloradodot.info/ and click on the green cell phone icon in the upper right hand corner of the page. Updates are also available via Twitter @coloradodot and be sure to “Like” us on our new Facebook page at www.facebook.com/coloradodot.
