RALEIGH – The N.C. Department of Transportation has awarded contracts for improving 63 miles of roadways in Chatham County and nearly 21 miles of Lee County roads, including sections of U.S. 421, U.S. 64 and N.C. 42.
The work includes milling, resurfacing and shoulder reconstruction in both counties, and some roadway widening in Lee County. It also involves 27 sections of secondary roads in Chatham County and eight sections of secondary roads in Lee.
S.T. Wooten Corporation entered the lowest bid for both projects – $10.4 million for the Chatham County improvements and $3.7 million for those in Lee County. Combined, the bids are about $2.3 million below estimated costs for the projects.
Work on both projects could begin as early as April and are scheduled to be complete by June 30, 2020.
Resurfacing will require ramp lane closures at the U.S. 64 interchange with Business 64 on the west side of Pittsboro, and at the interchange of U.S. 421 and Pittsboro Goldston Road near Goldston. The ramps will be resurfaced at night and closures are not allowed from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
There will also be lane closures where work takes place in both directions on U.S. 421 between N.C. 42 and Kelly Drive. Closures there will not be allowed from 7 to 8:30 a.m. so it doesn’t interfere with rush hour traffic.
These are among 21 major highway and bridge projects awarded this month by the NCDOT.
Per state law, they went to the lowest bidder among qualified contractors. They are worth $331.5 million, more than $57 million under engineer estimates.