By Michele Fuetsch, Staff Reporter
This story appears in the Oct. 24 print edition of Transport Topics.
Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels has announced that a $13.9 million contract has been awarded for repairs to the closed Ohio River bridge that carries Interstate 64 traffic between southern Indiana and Louisville, Ky.
The Sherman Minton Bridge has been closed since Sept. 9, when a routine inspection turned up cracks in load-bearing steel joints.
Subsequent inspections revealed additional joints that would have to be strengthened to make the bridge safe for the 70,000 to 80,000 vehicle trips made across it each day.
Daniels announced Oct. 18 that the winning construction bid — which came in lower than the $20 million state transportation officials originally estimated — had been awarded to Hall Contracting of Kentucky Inc., Louisville, Ky.
Hall has committed to completing the repairs in 135 work days, a statement from the Indiana Department of Transportation noted.
Built by both Indiana and Kentucky, the bridge is maintained by Indiana.
Since the closing of the Sherman Minton, traffic has been diverted to another interstate bridge, the span north of Louisville that carries Interstate 65 traffic between Kentucky and Indiana.
Under the terms of the contract, the contractor can receive an incentive of $100,000 for each day the bridge opens earlier than the 135 work days in the bid. There is a $5 million or 50-day cap.
Likewise, payments to the contractor will be reduced by $100,000 for each day the bridge stays closed past the 135 work days promised in the bid.
Workers will “attach 2.4 million pounds of reinforcing steel plating along both sides of the bridge ties, which run horizontally along the upstream and downstream sides of the 1,600-foot structure,” the Indiana DOT said.
“The repairs will increase the bridge’s safety and reliability and, with regular maintenance, extend its useful life at least 20 years,” INDOT said.
The Federal Highway Administration has said it will pay 25% of the repair costs, with the two states evenly splitting the remainder, INDOT said.
Closure of the bridge drew national attention when it happened because President Obama launched his effort to persuade Congress to pass his proposed jobs bill, which contains $27 billion for what Obama has said is badly needed investment in roads and bridges.
Obama mentioned the bridge closure during his Sept. 22 visit to another Ohio River crossing — the traffic-clogged Brent Spence Bridge, which carries Interstate 71 and Interstate 75 traffic across the river between Cincinnati and Covington, Ky.
The Louisville and Cincinnati interstate bridges are major, but aging, freight routes in the Midwest. The Louisville bridge is 49 years old and the Cincinnati bridge is 63.
