Publication Number: FHWA-HRT-05-023
Date: January/February 2005

Award-Winning Projects Raise the Bar for Highway Quality

Innovation, teamwork, and a commitment to quality distinguish the winners of the National Partnership for Highway Quality's (NPHQ) 2004 "Making a Difference" Awards. The awards honor practices that raise the bar for roadway performance, safety, and environmental stewardship. "The Making a Difference Awards recognize innovators who take calculated and beneficial risks, people who make partnering more than a word," said Bob Templeton, Executive Director of NPHQ.

The Texas Department of Transportation received a gold award in the "Breaking the Mold" category for its development of the new Motor Grader Lay-Down Blade and Skid Box, which allow hot-mix asphalt (HMA) to be laid to the desired width and depth with one pass of the grader, after which the HMA is immediately ready for compaction. The devices save money, conserve time and labor, and increase safety for workers.

In the "Risk Taking" category, the Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) won a gold award for its Woodrow Wilson Bridge Project Contracting Team. After the team bid the largest construction project in SHA history, the completion of twin six-lane drawbridges carrying I-95 over the Potomac River between Maryland and Virginia, only one bid was received. This bid exceeded the project estimate by $365 million. SHA modified the design for the project and re-bid the contract as three separate segments. Sixteen bids were received, with the winning ones keeping the project within the original budget.

The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) also earned a gold award for "Risk Taking" for restoring disturbed areas of the rare, protected Preble's meadow jumping mouse's habitat, which was located along its right-of-way property for I-25 by East Plum Creek in the Town of Castle Rock. In addition, CDOT created a conservation bank along East Plum Creek where the mouse could reside.

The gold award for "Partnering" went to Maryland for its collaboration on the construction of a $25 million new interchange along I-270, a primary commuter route that carries more than 200,000 vehicles a day in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. By partnering with stakeholders that included the contractor, 10 subcontractors, and 14 utility companies, SHA cut 9 months off of the 3-year project schedule.

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) won the gold award for a "State Quality Initiative." The Quality Assurance (QA) Team of VDOT's Northern Virginia District was the first of its kind in the State, offering a range of outreach, training, mentoring, and auditing services. Aspects of the QA program are now being implemented across the State.

Also receiving silver and bronze awards were:

Breaking the Mold

Silver-Maryland

Bronze-Colorado

Partnering - Silver-Texas

Bronze-Georgia, Kansas, and North Carolina

Risk Taking - Bronze-Connecticut

State Quality Initiative - Silver-Texas

For more information on the 2004 awards, contact Bob Templeton at NPHQ, 512-301-9899 (fax: 512-301-9897; email: btemplenphq@aol.com), or visit www.nphq.org. The nomination form for the 2005 NPHQ National Achievement Award is also now available on the NPHQ Web site.

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