BOSTON - As part of Governor Deval Patrick's Massachusetts Recovery Plan to secure the state's economic future, the Patrick-Murray Administration today announced that a bridge repair project in Lowell is moving forward as part of the Governor's historic $3 billion Accelerated Bridge Program approved by the legislature in 2008. Construction will be overseen by the Massachusetts Highway Department.

The $36.9 million "Design/Build" project involves the reconstruction of both the northbound and southbound lanes of Interstate 495, including the repair of six bridges that were constructed in 1961. The contract was awarded to the Middlesex Corp/AECOM Design Build team. Two of the bridges span the Boston & Maine and MBTA railroad, two cross Woburn Street and the remaining two pass over the Concord River. Three lanes will operate at peak hours at all times in both directions for the duration of the project, including crossover lanes for traffic management purposes. Some of the work will take place at night. Construction work is scheduled for completion by late 2010 with full completion of the work, including landscape restoration, by June 2011.

"We have an historic opportunity to invest today in a comprehensive plan to repair our bridge infrastructure that will improve travel conditions and create thousands of jobs in every corner of the Commonwealth for years to come," said Transportation Secretary James A. Aloisi, Jr.

"Design/build is a critically important feature of the Accelerated Bridge Program, which MassHighway is treating as a laboratory of innovation," said MassHighway Commissioner Luisa Paiewonsky. "We are reducing the timeframes for these projects while ensuring that safety and environmental protection are emphasized."

"This is great news," said Representative Tom Golden, D-Lowell. "Not only is it vital to economic development, but from a public safety standpoint, it is very important for the quality of life."

The Accelerated Bridge Program team will complete a number of projects with Design/Build, which compresses the traditional design/bid/build method into a single entity with contractors responsible for design and construction of a project. Working together, design and construction teams will complete projects within shorter timelines. The project teams will closely measure performance on these projects determine time-saving measures and how to improve the design-build process. Howard/Stein-Hudson Associates (HSH) which will be conducting the public involvement process. The project team began its public outreach on September 9 with a briefing for state and local officials. A meeting for residents and stakeholders will be held at 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 21, at the Holy Family Parish Center, 122 Andrews St., Lowell. MassHighway has thus far identified four projects for the design/build delivery method. A project to replace a bridge in Grafton has already been completed. Two other projects involve the Whittier Bridge on Interstate 95 in Amesbury/Salisbury; and the Fore River Bridge in Quincy/Weymouth.

MassHighway and its ABP partner, the Department of Conservation and Recreation, will implement and assess performance of the Accelerated Bridge Program on a number of innovative methods of projects delivery.

A total of 543 MassHighway and DCR bridges were structurally deficient when the Accelerated Bridge Program was planned. Without the funding provided by the Accelerated Bridge Program, that number would have increased to nearly 700 structurally deficient bridges by 2016. The Accelerated Bridge Program will instead reduce the number of structurally-deficient bridges to approximately 450. The program will create thousands of engineering and construction jobs and provide long-term savings in avoided costs due to inflation and deferred maintenance. The Accelerated Bridge Program will provide the latest information on project progress on the interactive ABP website: http://www.mass.gov/acceleratedbridges.

Additional information is available at: http://www.mhd.state.ma.us/495lowellbridgebundle.

Additional Facts
Governor Patrick's Massachusetts Recovery Plan combines a range of state and federal funding sources to provide immediate and long-term economic relief. The Massachusetts Recovery Plan positions the Commonwealth for recovery in the following ways:

• Deliver immediate relief by investing in the road, bridge and rail projects that put people to work today and providing safety net services that sustain people who are especially vulnerable during an economic crisis;
• Use public infrastructure improvements to leverage private investment and broad-based economic development;
• Build a better tomorrow through education and infrastructure investments that strengthen our economic competitiveness, prepare workers for the jobs of the future and support clean energy, broadband and technology projects that cut costs while growing the economy; and

Reform state government by eliminating the pension and ethics loopholes that discredit the work of government and revitalize the transportation networks that have suffered from decades of neglect and inaction.

For transportation news and updates visit the EOT blog at www.mass.gov/blog/transportation or follow EOT on twitter at www.twitter.com/massdot.

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