Three Connecticut Projects Win Regional America’s Transportation Awards
Julie Devine
Three Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT)
projects won regional awards in the 2025 America’s Transportation Awards
competition, sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials (AASHTO).
“The America’s Transportation Awards shine a spotlight on
the vital projects state DOTs deliver for their communities to enhance safety,
expand mobility for users, deliver a better quality of life for residents and
visitors, and keep our economy moving,” said AASHTO Executive Director Jim
Tymon. “The America’s Transportation Awards competition continues to show us
that state DOTs are able to transform communities in a variety of ways. And as
Congress works toward a new federal surface transportation bill, lawmakers need
to only look at the tangible benefits that states deliver to their customers
through examples like these winners to see why robust federal funding to states
is so important.”
Twenty-six transportation projects were submitted by seven
states and the District of Columbia in the Northeast Association of State
Transportation Officials (NASTO) region for this year’s competition.
Projects are judged in four categories: Quality of Life/Community Development,
Operations Excellence, Best Use of Technology and Innovation, and Safety.
All nominated projects first compete at the regional level
against projects of their own size (small, costing up to $10 million; medium,
costing between $10 million and $100 million; or large, costing more than $100
million).
The top three scoring projects from regional competitions
throughout the U.S. will advance to the Top 12 and compete for two national
honors in the 2025 America’s Transportation Awards. The Grand Prize will be
chosen by an independent panel of judges and the People’s Choice Award will be
decided through online public voting. AASHTO will reveal both winners at its
annual meeting in November 2025.
The following three projects in the New England
Construction area won 2025 regional America’s Transportation Awards.
Fairfield Avenue Bridge (Operations Excellence, Medium
Project)
On May 2, 2024, a collision involving a flatbed tractor
trailer and a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of fuel on Interstate 95 led
to a fire that engulfed the Fairfield Avenue Bridge in Norwalk, Connecticut,
for nearly two hours, heavily damaging the two-span structure.
CTDOT worked with contractors on a round-the-clock bridge
demolition and highway reopening plan — removing tons of concrete, steel, and
debris, then milling and repaving the roadway. They reopened northbound I-95
lanes on the night of May 4 — just two days after the fire — and southbound
lanes on May 5.
After the reopening, reconstruction of the bridge began. The
emergency replacement project was awarded to Yonkers Contracting Company,
Inc., of Yonkers, New York.
The work finished in just seven months — ahead of schedule
and almost $3 million under the original budget. The overall bridge replacement
and demolition was completed for $16.8 million. Spanning approximately 170 feet
in length, the new bridge over I-95 includes sidewalks on both sides.
“I’m incredibly proud of the exceptional teamwork and
dedication of the Connecticut Department of Transportation and construction
crews to expedite this project and reopen the bridge months ahead of schedule,”
said CTDOT Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto. “Every partner on this project
overperformed the ambitious deadlines we set in May. This is a remarkable
achievement and demonstrates what we can get done for the traveling public when
federal, state, and local partners share a common purpose.”
Derby-Shelton Bridge Pedestrian and Bicyclist Access
Improvements (Quality of Life/Community Development, Small Project)
The Derby-Shelton Bridge carries Bridge Street (State Road
712) over the Housatonic River between the downtown areas of Shelton and Derby,
Connecticut. Originally built in 1918, the substructure of the historic bridge
remained in good condition, but other elements — including the pavement
structure, parapet walls, and lighting — had deteriorated over time.
Designed by AECOM under contract to the Naugatuck
Valley Council of Governments, the bridge improvement project aimed to renovate
and rehabilitate elements along the top of the structure while enhancing
aesthetics and connectivity for pedestrians and cyclists. CTDOT assumed
administration of the $7 million project, awarding the construction contract
to Mohawk Northeast, Inc., headquartered in Plantsville, Connecticut.
Replacement of bridge parapet walls — New concrete parapet
walls replicate the original, historic style. A decorative railing, matching
the style of Veterans Memorial Park in Shelton, adds safety for pedestrians.
Roadway improvements — These include adding a second
eastbound lane, replacing the bituminous pavement and underlaying concrete
deck, and narrowing the shoulders to allow for the additional lane. An
intersection in Derby was also adjusted to include a dedicated right-turn lane.
Enhanced pedestrian and bicycle facilities — A larger
pedestrian space was created on the south side, alongside a track that
separates cyclists from vehicular traffic and pedestrians. Textured pavement
and planted buffer zones define the spaces. These new facilities connect with
the Derby Greenway and Shelton’s Riverwalk.
Lighting upgrades — Outdated lighting was replaced with
period-style decorative lights along the parapet walls. The new lights enhance
the bridge’s nighttime visibility and adhere to dark-sky guidelines.
The rehabilitated bridge provides a more visually appealing
gateway for both cities, enhances safety for non-vehicular travelers, and
preserves traffic flow between the two revitalized downtowns.
Wrong Way Driver Detection System (Safety, Medium Project)
The number of fatalities caused by wrong way drivers on
Connecticut highways jumped by 500 percent in 2022. But with over 700 ramps on
the interstate system, CTDOT faced significant challenges in identifying
countermeasures and prioritizing their deployment.To address the problem, they
first conducted an analysis of ramp locations, especially where on- and
off-ramps are located on the same side of the road (since national research
shows these locations have a higher risk of wrong way events) and ramp locations
close to establishments that serve alcohol (since impaired drivers are more
likely to mistakenly enter the highway in the wrong direction). Each ramp
location received a risk factor assessment to develop priority rankings.
At a cost of $40 million, CTDOT implemented wrong way
detection and notification systems for 225 priority locations. The systems use
video cameras to detect vehicles traveling in the wrong direction. If a vehicle
is detected, wrong way signs outlined with multiple sets of red lights begin
flashing to alert the driver. The system also sends notifications to the CTDOT
Highway Operations Center and local state police in real time.
In the last year, these systems activated more than 300
times and helped cut the number of fatal crashes from 13 in 2022 to six in 2024
while reducing fatalities from 23 in 2022 to 13 in 2024. CTDOT is now
increasing collaboration with other state agencies and municipal leaders,
especially law enforcement, to target other high-risk locations.
This project tied for first in the Safety category for
medium-sized projects with the Delaware Department of Transportation’s SR
299, SR 1 to Catherine Street widening project.
Connecticut DOT Project to Reconfigure the Curve on I-95 in East Lyme
Larry Bernstein
East Lyme, Connecticut, lies on Niantic Bay and is part of
the Long Island Sound. The town has a steadily increasing population of nearly
20,000. Running through the town is I-95, which the Connecticut Department
of Transportation (CTDOT) and Manafort Brothers, Inc. are
reconfiguring to improve safety and increase mobility.
A Clearer Path Ahead
The project is taking place along a 1.33-mile stretch of
I-95. The average daily traffic along this stretch is 80,000, and congestion is
common.
Safety is an issue within the project area, as there is an
elevated crash rate. There are a few reasons for the higher rate, according to
CTDOT. Among them is the vertical geometry of I-95.
A large hill along the highway causes a line-of-sight
problem for drivers. To address this, the team is raising the highway on the
south side of the interchange and lowering it on the north side. The issue
occurs around a bridge.
“When the project is complete, there will be a 14-foot
elevation increase on the south side and 9-foot decrease elevation on the north
side to blend the curvature,” said James Therrien, a Resident Engineer
for GM2, which is providing construction engineering and inspection
services for the state and insuring CTDOT plans are met.
“The project will
correct the insufficient sight lines that people have while traveling along the
interstate,” said Andrew Millovitsch, the CTDOT Project Engineer
overseeing the project.
The project includes other elements that are also expected
to help increase safety. These include:
Constructing new on- and off-ramps at Exit 74 northbound
(NB) and southbound (SB). The off-ramps will be lengthened so drivers will have
sufficient time to decelerate as they go around the curve to the signalized
intersection. The lengthened on-ramp will give drivers enough space to speed up
and enter onto I-95.
Removing a hairpin left-hand turn for Route 161 SB traffic
that crosses two lanes of oncoming traffic to access I-95 NB. It will be
replaced by a dedicated right-hand turn lane that accesses a new cloverleaf
northbound on-ramp.
Adding a third lane between exits 74 and 75 on I-95 NB and
SB. The goal is to allow locals traveling only between these exits to avoid
merging with through traffic. It also enables ample room to merge for those who
are continuing on the highway.
Installing new signalized intersections off the highway,
allowing drivers to enter and exit local businesses.
To reduce congestion, the project will:
Widen Route 161, which runs under I-95. The team is adding
turning lanes to the two traveling lanes. They are also widening the shoulders.
Add a third lane between exits 74 and 75, as noted above.
This is expected to facilitate better traffic flow and reduce congestion.
The project is also contributing to the city’s goal of
improving foot traffic from the highway to the shore.
The scope includes inputting sidewalks and adding a large
commuter lot off northbound I-95. Drivers can exit their vehicles in the lot
and walk to the new sidewalks. Previously, there were two small lots. They are
being taken out of service due to the highway widening.
A final project element involves the installation of 16
retaining walls. Their size will vary from small to huge structures. The
retaining walls are being installed to maintain the elevation changes.
“If we went in
another direction [and not installed retaining walls], it would have been
necessary to purchase real estate on both sides of the highway to achieve the
needed slope to improve the geometry of I-95,” Therrien said.
Soil Conditions and Removal
The project required the team to excavate 150,000 cubic
yards of earth and 50,000 cubic yards of rock. The team has plans to use the
materials for the large fills along the highway and construction of some of the
new on- and off-ramps that were excavated. However, that element will occur in
the later stages of the project’s eight-stage construction plan. Finding space
to store the materials until then was a challenge.
“We massaged the original staging plans to free up real
estate and give us a place to store the materials,” Millovitsch said. “If we
wouldn’t have been successful in doing this, it would have required shipping
the materials off site and bringing them back when we needed them.”
Changing the project staging and using materials on ramps
and walls outside of the contract staging plans saved time and money and
lessened the environmental impact.
Besides the large quantity of soils being handled as part of
this project, the existing soil conditions presented other issues. The
subsurface conditions found under the existing highway are substandard to build
on, as it has many voids and is not a completely solid mass. This issue was not
a big surprise to the team, given the landscape of East Lyme. However,
according to Therrien, it made the soil difficult to work with.
“We used grout to fill the voids and stabilize the soil,” he
said.
When installing temporary retaining walls to hold up
existing I-95 lanes during construction, metal rods are drilled horizontally
and grouted into the existing soils to stabilize the temporary walls. As grout
was being installed for these stabilizing steel rods, the voids were apparent
because the team needed 50 to 100 times the anticipated amount of grout to
secure the rods.
This effort was essentially filling these voids under the
existing highway. Large boulders were used as backfill under the old highway.
To help facilitate this process, a chemical was added to the grout being used,
which caused the grout to expand once it was pumped into place.
Serious About Quality Control
Located in Plainville, Connecticut, Manafort Brothers Inc.
is a “demolition and construction company that performs specialty construction
and demolition services as well as general contracting services,” according to
their website.
Millovitsch worked with them previously. Both he and
Therrien said they have been impressed with the general contractor,
particularly their quality control.
“Manafort’s quality control has been exceptional, and
they’ve been exceptional at self-policing quality control,” Millovitsch said.
“The general contractor is required to come up with a
quality control plan, and Manafort has embraced the state’s requirements,”
Therrien added. “They submit documentation on time, foreshadow issues prior to
starting activities, and develop plans that mitigate constructability problems
before they even happen, which has helped us move through issues prior to them
actually occurring.”
“They’ve partnered
with the department during construction to keep the project moving in a
positive direction, have good field supervision, identify constructability
concerns, and come up with resolutions for schedule impacts,” Millovitsch said.
Manafort’s work has led to the project being both on budget
and on schedule.
The project has a construction budget of $148 million. The
federal government is paying 80 percent of the funds, while the state is
financing the remaining 20 percent. The project is within contingency (10
percent). There have been an additional $8 million in project costs.
“The majority of the extra money has gone towards addressing
the unforeseen soil conditions,” Therrien said. “Our plan was to use standard
mechanically stabilized earth walls, but due to the soil conditions, we had to
change to soldier pile and lagging walls which brought on scope changes and
increases costs.”
Construction on the project began in April 2023. The state
gave the general contractor 976 calendar days, which is four construction
seasons. The target end date is November 2026.
At the time of writing this article, the project is on
schedule despite the soil challenges described above.
“Great communication between us and the design team and us
and the contractors has been a key factor in keeping this project on schedule,”
Millovitsch said.
He also credits Manafort. “They’ve worked the past two
winters and have been dedicated to working throughout the year,” he said. “We
typically have a four-month winter shutdown from December to March, but
Manafort has found a way to move forward during the winter months.”
If not for the soil issues, Therrien and Millovitsch think
the project would have finished early and that it still might.
When the I-95 Interchange 74 Improvements project in East
Lyme is completed, the section of highway will be safer. Drivers will no longer
face a line-of-sight problem, as the geometry issues will be minimized. Entry
and egress from the highway will be less challenging, and congestion will be
lessened. Locals and tourists can also enjoy greater mobility while walking in
the area.
Encompass Health seeks state OK to build $69.5M rehab hospital in Branford
Encompass Health Corp. wants to build a second
rehabilitation hospital in Connecticut.
The Birmingham, Alabama-based company filed a certificate of
need (CON) application on July 25 with the state Office of Health Strategy
seeking approval to build a $69.5 million, 50-bed, for-profit rehab facility on
property at 596, 612 & 616 East Main St.
596 and 612 East Main St. currently are residential
properties, while 616 East Main St. is a commercial/industrial property. None
of the properties is currently owned by Encompass Health.
Encompass Health declined to comment on the application.
A hospital or health organization is required to file a CON
application for a variety of reasons, including when it wants to establish a
new healthcare facility.
According to the 467-page CON application, Encompass Health,
doing business as Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Branford LLC,
would construct a one-story, 54,765-square-foot facility with 50 beds.
The construction price includes “land costs and the
associated sitework for the property including, for example, grading costs of
approximately $1.35 million, rock allowance of approximately $750,000,
allowance for retaining walls of approximately $300,000, and underground
detention costs of approximately $900,000.”
The facility would be Encompass Health’s second in
Connecticut. It is building a 40-bed, $39 million rehabilitation hospital in
Danbury, and in February it sought a
six-month extension to complete construction. The Danbury hospital is
expected to open in September.
The company is the largest comprehensive physical inpatient
rehabilitation facility provider in the nation, with 169 hospitals in 38
states.
According to the application, the Branford facility would
address “a gap in care for residents in the southeastern portion of the South
Central Connecticut Planning Region and the contiguous southwestern portion of
Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region.”
Encompass states there are no inpatient rehabilitation
facility beds “within or proximate to the defined 21 ZIP Code service area that
will be served by the proposed new hospital.”
The proposed facility would provide specialized
rehabilitative care to patients recovering from a variety of injuries and
illnesses, including stroke, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury,
amputations, orthopedic surgery or injury, cardiac episodes and pulmonary
conditions, the application states.
It adds that the facility would include “all private rooms
and baths; a well-equipped therapy gym; an Activities of Daily Living suite; a
dedicated outdoor therapy area; a dialysis treatment area for patients to
remain on-site when dialysis is needed; activities/day room for patients and
families; and sufficiently sized and appropriately designed support spaces.”
Once a CON application is filed, OHS has 30 days to review
it. If it seeks additional information, an applicant has 60 days to respond.
Former massive CT landfill targeted to become source for revenue and energy. The idea is spreading
The city would reap the benefits without having to worry
about the maintenance or operation of the project.
Bloomfield-based CTEC Solar is planning a 14-acre solar farm on
Hartford’s former landfill along I-91, a deal that’s projected to
yield a few million dollars to the city over the next 20 years.
The agreement is the latest in a series of arrangements
where Connecticut cities and towns are leasing closed landfills to solar energy
companies.
Just last fall, Verogy completed
a 2.5-acre solar project at Middletown’s
capped landfill, a project expected to generate more than a million
kilowatts of clean energy a year. Danbury, Bethel, Deep River, East Haven,
Groton and Montville either plan to or have completed similar facilities.
The deals typically provide revenue for the host community
while enabling the solar industry to cover essentially useless land with solar
panels rather than taking out-of-service farmland, open fields or similar
space.
Hartford leaders say the agreement will be an environmental
and economic win, with the city putting up no money while getting protection
from sharing CTEC’s risks.
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“With this agreement, the city will not — I emphasize not —
be responsible for operation, maintenance or any damage to the array,” City
Architect Julia Jack told
the city council committee Wednesday. “Nor will it be responsible for
any production shortfalls.
“This agreement has the potential to bring to the city
approximately between $2 million to over $4 million over the 20-year period,”
Jack said.
Hartford determined it had sufficient space at the Leibert
Road landfill to accommodate a solar array producing about 6.3 gigawatts hours
annually, Mayor Arunan Arulampalam told the city council.
“This project will be the largest solar photovoltaic
development deal the city has done to date,” he wrote a memo in mid-July.
Under the contract, CTEC is responsible for designing,
engineering, install and maintaining a ground-mounted array near the center of
the former landfill.
Under the lease, the company would provide monthly payments
and quarterly credits or rebates on the city’s energy bill.
“The city stands to significantly reduce its overall
electricity cost, furthering both our financial goals and moving us further
toward our climate action goals,” Jack said.
CTEC retained Waterford-based All-Points Technology Corp. to
do a detailed environmental assessment of the property, and the consultant gave
a favorable report last year.
“The project will meet applicable local, state, national and
industry health and safety standards and requirements related to electric power
generation,” according to All-Points. “The facility will not consume any raw
materials, will not produce any byproducts and will be unstaffed during normal
operating conditions.”
Hartford's former landfill between I-91 and the Connecticut
River. (Courtesy of State of Connecticut)
CTEC will monitor the array remotely and will be able to
de-energize the equipment in an emergency, All-Points said.
Eleven
years ago, a smaller array was installed on Hartford’s landfill, the
first time in Connecticut that such a property had been used for solar power.
Solar companies have since been putting panels on everything from West
Hartford’s town hall to Mystic Aquarium and Cinemark’s theater in North Haven.
Recently there’s been a flurry of similar projects at closed
municipal landfills.
Verogy
is pursuing plans in Deep River and Montville, and Bethel previously partnered with
Ameresco for a solar farm there.
The 100-acre Hartford Landfill was once dubbed Mount
Trashmore. It previously was a toxic, smelly mar on the landscape, which for
generations was east of the city’s North End.
It had opened in 1940, and once was an expanding and
smoldering and putrid dump overburdened with trash trucked in from more than 60
towns in Connecticut and neighboring states, The
Courant has reported.
Trump administration cancels plans to develop new offshore wind projects
The Trump administration is canceling plans to use large
areas of federal waters for new offshore wind development, the latest step to
suppress the industry in the United States.
More than 3.5 million acres had been designated wind energy
areas, the offshore locations deemed most suitable for wind energy development.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is now rescinding all designated wind
energy areas in federal waters, announcing on Wednesday an end to setting aside
large areas for “speculative wind development.”
Offshore wind lease sales were anticipated off the coasts of
Texas, Louisiana, Maine, New York, California and Oregon, as well as in the
central Atlantic. The Biden administration last year had announced a five-year schedule to lease federal
offshore tracts for wind energy production.
Trump began reversing the country’s energy policies after
taking office in January. A series of executive orders took aim at increasing oil, gas and coal production.
The Republican president has been hostile to renewable
energy, particularly offshore wind. One early executive order temporarily halted offshore wind lease
sales in federal waters and paused the issuance of approvals, permits and loans
for all wind projects. In trying to make a case against wind energy, he has
relied on false and misleading claims about the use of wind
power in the U.S. and around the world.
The bureau said it was acting in accordance with Trump’s
action and an order by his interior secretary this week to end any
preferential treatment toward wind and solar facilities, which were described
as unreliable, foreign-controlled energy sources.
Renewable energies such as wind and solar provide an
intermittent supply of electricity when it is windy or sunny.
Increasingly, batteries are getting paired with solar and wind projects to
allow renewables to replace fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal, while keeping
a steady flow of power when sources such as wind and solar are not producing.
European companies are developing offshore wind farms along
America’s East Coast.
The Interior Department is considering withdrawing areas on
federal lands with high potential for onshore wind power to balance energy
development with other uses such as recreation and grazing. It also will review
bird deaths associated with wind turbines, which are allowed under federal
permits that consider the deaths “incidental” to energy production.
Earlier this month, the department said all solar and wind
energy projects on federal lands and waters must be personally approved by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.
Robin Shaffer, president of Protect Our Coast New Jersey,
applauded the administration for its actions and said they were long overdue.
Opponents of offshore wind projects are particularly vocal and well-organized
in New Jersey.
“It’s hard to believe these projects ever got this far
because of the immensity, scale, scope and expense, compared to relatively
cheap and reliable forms of onshore power,” he said Thursday. “We’re nearly
there, but we haven’t reached the finish line yet.”
The Sierra Club said the administration’s “relentless
obstruction of wind energy” shows it does not care about creating affordable,
reliable energy for everyday Americans.
“No matter how much they want to bolster their buddies in
the dirty fossil fuel industry, we will continue to push for the cleaner,
healthier, and greener future we deserve,” Xavier Boatright, Sierra Club’s
deputy legislative director for clean energy and electrification, said in a
statement.
Attorneys general from 17 states, including Connecticut, and
the District of Columbia are suing in
federal court to challenge Trump’s executive order halting leasing and
permitting for wind energy projects. His administration had also halted work on
a major offshore wind project for New York, but allowed
it to resume in May.
The nation’s first commercial-scale offshore wind farm,
a 12-turbine wind farm called South Fork, opened last year
east of Montauk Point, New York.