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MD Rebidding $10+M Nice Bridge Project

Monday, October 22, 2012

More items for Program/Project Management

The Maryland Transportation Authority will accept bids Nov. 20 for repairs, cleaning and painting on the Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge—a contract now valued at $10 million to $15 million.

The 1.7-mile-long continuous truss bridge connects Dahlgren, VA, and Newburg, MD, over the Potomac River.

Maryland Transportation Authority

The state rebid the cleaning and coating project after all bids in the first round exceeded the original estimate.

The authority advertised the project for bids in February and received quotes from five contractors in March.  However, the owner’s published estimate was $5 million to $10 million, and the low bidder, Olympus Painting Contractors Inc., submitted a price of about $10.4 million. The highest of the five bids exceeded $13.5 million.

Scope of Work

The scope of the contract remains the same, but the authority increased the cost estimate to its higher $10 million to $15 million tier.

The project includes recoating beam, girder, approach truss spans, and other structural components; sealing, caulking, and coating pack rusted tower connections; and spot-coating other steel impacted by the repairs.

The designated structural steel will be abrasive blast-cleaned to SSPC-SP 10 (Near White) or power-tool cleaned to SSPC-SP 11 (Bare Metal) and recoated with MDSHA System C, which consists of an organic zinc-rich primer, an epoxy intermediate, and a urethane finish. The existing coatings may contain lead.

The project also includes applying a silane water repellent sealer to 27,500 square yards of concrete deck surfaces. 

About the Bridge

President Franklin D. Roosevelt participated in the bridge’s groundbreaking in 1939, and the span opened a year later.

Originally known as the Potomac River Bridge, the bridge was renamed in 1967 for a former Maryland governor.

Although narrow (one 11-foot lane in each direction with no shoulders), steep (up to a 3.75 percent grade) and somewhat slow, with reduced speed limits, the two-lane toll bridge carries nearly 5.8 million vehicles each year. It is the southernmost crossing of the Potomac River.

Reported by Paint BidTracker, a construction reporting service devoted to identifying contracting opportunities for the coatings community. Visit us on Facebook!