WASHINGTON — The planned work to widen Va. 28 in Prince William County, Virginia, will be delayed, one phase by up to three years, after bids for the construction came in much higher than expected.
The county had hoped to award a single contract a few months ago to widen 1.7 miles of Va. 28 between Fitzwater Drive and Aden Road, extend the newly realigned Vint Hill Road three-quarters of a mile to Sudley Manor Drive, and then widen 1.4 miles of Va. 28 between Vint Hill Road and Pennsylvania Avenue by the Manassas Regional Airport.
Construction on the first two projects would have been done in early 2019, with the stretch near Manassas widened by the summer of 2020.
Instead, Prince William County Transportation Director Rick Canizales told the Board of Supervisors Tuesday, bids for the unified project came in significantly higher than the county had expected, and the three phases will now be separated to search for better deals. That means delays.
“We’re still going to be able to complete [Fitzwater Drive to Aden Road] hopefully by 2019, and on Vint Hill it’ll be a couple months past the 2019 date we had told you before, but, as you can tell, on the Route 28 project [between Vint Hill Road and Pennsylvania Avenue], that’s where we suffer the most, where we’re looking at a possible two- to three-year delay. Hoping that it’s a lot less than that, but [I] just wanted to give a worst-case scenario at this time until we start seeing what the bids are,” Canizales said.
For the most-delayed project, he said, the county plans to first go through a more detailed design process starting this spring, to figure out what they can afford before looking to award a construction contract later on down the road.
The county just cut the ribbon this winter on a related first phase of this project, to widen Va. 28 to four lanes, including the realignment of Vint Hill Road.
The lowest bid for the next phase of the widening, between Fitzwater Drive and Aden Road in Nokesville, was $9 million over the county’s estimate. The low bid for the extension of the new Vint Hill Road, near Cedar Point Elementary School to Sudley Manor Drive, came in $12 million over the expected cost.
“We’re going to be looking at some cost-saving measures, looking at some redesign hoping that we can fit the project within budget,” Canizales said.
Other projects to widen or make other changes to Va. 28 are underway in other parts of the area.
