Transportation Commission awards $11.9 million in highway contracts

Contracts totaling $11.9 million for 11 highway projects around the state, including one made possible by increased fuel tax revenue, were awarded by the Wyoming Transportation Commission during its May teleconference meeting.

Riverside Contracting of Missoula, Mont., won the largest of the contracts with the low bid of $3.4 million for surface and bridge rehabilitation work on 4.5 miles of US 14-16-20 about 14 miles west of Cody. The work will include rehabilitation of the Shoshone River and Trout Creek bridges at each end of the project, and a new layer of asphalt between the bridges. It will be paid for with revenue from the 10-cent fuel tax increase. The contract completion date is Sept. 30, 2016.

Kolbe Striping of Castle Rock, Colo., was the low bidder at $1.9 million for epoxy striping on highway sections in Albany, Carbon, Crook, Laramie, Lincoln, Sheridan, Sublette, Sweetwater, Teton and Weston counties by Nov. 30. The epoxy striping lasts longer than standard paint, and is used on highway sections that are difficult to stripe or carry high traffic volumes.

Kolbe also won three smaller contracts for special markings to be completed by Oct. 15. The contracts were for:

• $257,000 for installing thermoplastic pavement markings on highways in Natrona and Niobrara counties. The thermoplastic markings also last longer than standard paint, and are used at intersections and on heavily traveled roads;

• $180,000 for installing railroad crossing markings in Big Horn, Converse, Goshen, Hot Springs, Laramie, Lincoln, Natrona, Park, Platte, Sheridan, Sweetwater, Washakie and Weston counties; and

• $158,000 for installing thermoplastic pavement markings on highway sections in Campbell, Johnson, Sheridan and Weston counties.

Dietzler Construction of Yoder won a $1.6 million contract to replace the bridge over the Medicine Bow River in Elk Mountain. The existing bridge was built before 1930 and is on the National Register of Historic Places, but WYDOT engineers determined the timber-decked structure could not be rehabilitated. The pony trusses from the bridge will be removed and attached as an aesthetic enhancement to the nearby Mill Creek Bridge. The new Medicine Bow River Bridge will include a truss façade to make it look similar to the existing bridge. The bridge will be built on the same alignment, so the existing bridge must be removed first, and a detour will be in use throughout the project. The contract completion date is June 15, 2016.

Dietzler also was the low bidder at $1.3 million for rehabilitation of bridges in Goshen, Natrona and Platte counties by Oct. 31, 2016. Much of the work will entail bridge deck repairs and new concrete pavement. The bridges involved are the Dry Creek and Horse Creek bridges on WYO 220 southwest of Casper, the US 26 bridges over the Platte River west of Guernsey and the Interstate Canal west of Fort Laramie, and the WYO 314 bridge over Richeau Creek about 2 miles east of Interstate 25.

Wilson Brothers Construction of Cowley submitted the low bid of $1.1 million for erosion repair work along the banks of the Big Wind River about 24 miles west of Riverton. The erosion that began during flooding in 2011, is threatening a US 26-287 bridge downstream. The contract completion date is Oct. 31.

Reiman Corp. of Cheyenne was awarded a $753,000 contract for bridge rehabilitation work on 2 miles of US 20-26 about 16 miles west of Casper. The work is scheduled for completion by Oct. 31.

Lewis and Lewis Inc. of Rock Springs submitted the low bid of $617,000 for a full-depth reclamation on three-quarters of a mile of WYO 410 in Mountain View. The work entails grinding off the existing deteriorated asphalt, mixing it with liquefied asphalt and using that as a base for a new layer of pavement. The contract completion date is Oct. 31.

Casper’s Hedquist Construction was the low bidder at $530,000 for adding turn lanes to WYO 220 at its intersection with Indian Springs Road in an area of Casper experiencing increasing traffic due to development. The work will include adding two left-turn lanes and one right-turn lane, and moving the existing electronic message sign slightly to the north to precede the new left-turn lane. The work is scheduled to be complete by Oct. 31.