The Virginia Department of Transportation has opened the first design-build roadway project in Virginia, doubling the out-bound shipping capacity of APM Terminals in Portsmouth. The private design-build team, which included contractor Tidewater Skanska and engineering firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, completed the $22 million project ahead of schedule.
Said Greg Lassiter, director of Design-Build Delivery for VHB: “The resulting time savings from this design-build contract meant lower costs for the Commonwealth of Virginia and earlier utilization of APMT’s marine container terminal. This project is a model of what the design-build method should be all about.”
Construction of the new interchange involved raising Route 164, a four-lane limited-access highway, 25 feet to accommodate an overpass over the new APM Terminals Boulevard. Careful construction phasing enabled all four lanes of highway traffic to be maintained throughout the project. Other improvements included extensive utility and drainage work, as well as reconfiguration of an existing highway exit and upgrades to commercial and government access roads. The roadway layout was chosen to minimize wetland impacts. (Read the VDOT press release.)
