The state has asked for bids, and is already receiving some, on the project to build optional toll lanes alongside I-75 and I-575 in Cobb and Cherokee counties, according to Georgia Department of Transportation Commissioner Keith Golden. It is the largest transportation project by far in state history.
If all goes according to plan, the lanes would open to traffic in March of 2018.
DOT has described the project publicly and posted information about it online. But the public may not see the request the state sent to bidders — which would typically outline the project in detail and the state’s requirements for it — or the formula by which the winner will be chosen.
Rather than by a simple low-dollar bid, the winner will be picked by “best value.”
After the winner is selected next year and the deal is inked, the documents would be made public, including the criteria that determine “best value,” said Jill Goldberg, a spokeswoman for the DOT. The proposals will also be publicized, but the proposers may delete “proprietary” information.
Goldberg said DOT’s standard practice is to keep requests for proposals confidential until procurement is over.
DOT is publicly describing “best value” as “financial and technical considerations.” In the world of road bidding, that often means a proposal that would handle traffic better or last longer. But the specific formula remains confidential.
Darryl VanMeter, state innovative program delivery engineer, said in an e-mail that “best value” had to do with innovation from the private competing companies. “The innovative ideas and thoughtful expertise will provide a way to foster efficient delivery, provide for an efficient design and construction, and potentially bring long-term performance enhancements to the built project.”
Goldberg said an affordable dollar amount would be “of great importance” because the state has to be able to pay for it.
The fundamental shape of the project won’t change, Golden said. It is expected to add two reversible toll lanes alongside I-75 from the Perimeter up to I-575; then one reversible toll lane each up I-75 and I-575, ending at about Hickory Grove Road and Sixes Road. Unlike the I-85 HOT lane, three-person carpools would not ride free.
Although the lanes will collect toll money, the revenue will not be enough to build and operate the toll system. Taxpayers will have to subsidize the project, likely by hundreds of millions of dollars. DOT currently estimates the total cost at $951.2 million. That includes things the state will pay for itself, such as buying land, Golden said. The construction could cost less than $700 million.
“We’re excited,” Golden said, adding that the project now appears to have the support of relevant power brokers, including Gov. Nathan Deal. Deal pulled the project from bidding last year when it was formulated as a long-term private lease to a toll road company. Now, as currently conceived, the state will own and operate the project after it opens to traffic.
Bids are expected by June, and Golden said he is already receiving submissions. If all goes smoothly DOT will choose a winner by July and sign the deal by November. If a losing bid has one or two good ideas, Golden said, DOT can purchase that work from the losing bidders and incorporate it as well.
Four teams have qualified to bid, including longtime Georgia contractors and global builders:
- C.W. Matthews Contracting Co. Inc. and the Michael Baker Corp.
- Fluor-Lane LLC
- Georgia Transportation Partners — comprising Bechtel Infrastructure Corp., Kiewit Infrastructure South Co., Dewberry and Davis LLC, and STV Inc.
- Northwest Express Road Builders — comprising Archer Western Contractors, the Hubbard Group and Parsons Corp.
Golden told legislators meeting in Athens this week that the project went out to bid Friday. The department plans to announce the development Wednesday at its board meetings in Atlanta.
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