INDIANAPOLIS - The Indiana Department of Transportation is looking for help from the private sector as it prepares an environmental survey for the Interstate 69 bridge over the Ohio River.
INDOT is accepting private bids for the bridge’s environmental study and early proposals on possible bridge design. INDOT spokesman Will Wingfield said opening the study for public input - and using a private company to conduct the study - is something INDOT does regularly.
“On large, complex projects -- and the I-69 bridge over the Ohio River certainly qualifies as that -- we often seek the assistance of the private sector,” Wingfield said.
This follows the pattern of previously completed sections of Interstate 69 as it has made its way north from Evansville toward Indianapolis. Wingfield said private consultants were involved in the study and design of the various sections of the highway.
For the proposed bridge, the environmental study will be completed first. Wingfield said the study will take a host of factors into account, including impact on homes and businesses. It will also look at the environmental implications of years of construction, potential cost of the bridge and the permanent impact a bridge would have on the region.
Current estimates from INDOT say the study will take three years to complete. Only after the study is finished can the state start moving forward with design, cost analysis and land acquisition, all of which would precede actual construction.
For private companies interested in completing the study, the deadline to submit proposals is Sept. 13. Wingfield said the proposals will be read by INDOT and scored based on a multitude of criteria. INDOT will then enter into contract negotiations with the company submitting the highest-scoring proposal.
Wingfield said the $14 million pledged by Indiana Gov. Mike Pence and Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin will go toward paying for the study.
On June 30, Pence and Bevin met at Ellis Park to sign a Memorandum of Agreement pledging to make an Interstate 69 bridge over the Ohio River a reality. Previous estimates as to the cost of the bridge ranged from $850 million to $1 billion. A committee tasked with finding long-term funding for Indiana’s infrastructure has said the bridge will be included in their discussions.