Road project moves forward
By Steve Herring
Published in News on June 30, 2017 6:57 AM
Work could begin as soon as the end of July on a $21.5 million contract to construct interchanges on U.S. 117 South at O'Berry Road, Dudley, and at Country Club Road, Mount Olive.
"We bid them together as a single project," said Jerry Page, N.C. Department of Transportation Division 4 project engineer.
Eight companies bid on the project.
S.T. Wooten Corp. of Wilson was low bidder at $21,573,864.42 -- some 8 percent below the estimated cost of $23,445,976.53.
The award letter to Wooten was given this past Tuesday.
Oct. 1, 2019, is the scheduled completion date with the exception of planting, reforestation, or the permanent establishment of vegetation, he said.
It would be open to traffic at that time, Page said.
The final completion date is March 29, 2020.
Any utility work should be completed well before to July 31 so as not to delay the project, he said.
Work is nearly complete on a water line relocation at Country Club Road. The line had to be relocated south so that it not be under the footing for the overpass.
Because of U.S. 117's proximity to U.S. 117 Alternate, the overpass will take U.S. 117 over Country Club Road.
Two bridges will be built, one for each direction on 117.
The project at O'Berry Road will take that road over U.S. 117.
The interchange at O'Berry Road and U.S. 117 South will eliminate the only traffic light south of U.S. 117 at U.S. 13 all the way to Interstate 40 in Sampson County.
While it has not been funded or received final approval, upgrading U.S. 117 from north of Country Club Road to south of Genoa Road near the Wayne County Fairgrounds -- the future Interstate 795 South corridor -- is included in the state's next draft 10-year transportation plan.
Also, U.S. 117 from Lee's Country Club Road to Old Smith Chapel Road would be upgraded to freeway standards under the plan.
That project would include constructing a new connector road along U.S 117 and converting the intersections to interchanges.
The plan is scheduled for adoption in August.