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I-85 widening will happen sooner than expected

Photo by James Nix

Traffic along Interstate I-85 near the Poplar Tent exit.

By Karen Cimino Wilson | Independent Tribune

Published: November 15, 2009

The $230 million widening of Interstate 85 from four to eight lanes in Cabarrus County will be put on the fast track as part of Gov. Beverly Perdue's plan to get the I-485 Outer Loop around Charlotte completed in five years.

Perdue announced Monday a plan to speed completion of the I-485 Outer Loop around Charlotte, starting work in 2010 and saving taxpayers $50 million to $100 million.

The plan also accelerates the completion of the interchange that connects the loop to I-85 north of Charlotte and the widening of I-85 — both projects that local leaders say are just as important to finishing the loop as the loop itself.

The I-85 widening was scheduled for construction to begin in December 2011. The new plan moves that date up 18 months to June or July.

"A lot of it was focused on Charlotte," Concord Mayor Scott Padgett said about the governor's announcement. "But it helps us as much as it does Charlotte. It will redistribute the traffic around Exit 49."

The plan also addresses improvements to the Poplar Tent Road and N.C. 73 exits and includes plans to widen both of those roads.

"That's almost as important as the widening," Padgett said about the high-traffic intersections.

Part of the I-85 widening plan also proposes moving Pitts School Road. N.C. Department of Transportation officials will meet on Wednesday to discuss issues raised by residents at a public hearing on the project that was held at Northwest Cabarrus High School in October.

The governor's plan to pay for the proposed $340 million I-485 completion project uses a construction and financing model called "Design/Build/Finance" that has never been used in North Carolina. The new plan allows one contractor to design and build each project. The winning bidder also puts up part of the financing on the project.

N.C. Department of Transportation officials say they view the Design/Build/Finance approach, which has been used by other states, as a model for future transportation initiatives.

"We see this as one more tool for the future that we can use when it makes economic sense, as it does in this case," Transportation Secretary Gene Conti said in a statement. "It's vital to have new strategies to address the state's transportation needs in a time of scarce resources from traditional revenue sources."

The advantage of the fast-track approach is that it puts all three projects to bid now while construction prices are low, according to the governor's office. The state has been receiving up to 20 percent in savings on highway projects as construction companies try to outbid each other for scarce work.

Under the plan, construction of the I-485 loop project would begin in 2010 and be completed by 2015.

The purchase of right of way land has already begun and requests for qualifications will be posted by mid-November.

• Contact Karen Cimino Wilson: 704-789-9141