CHARLESTON, WV – The West Virginia Department of Transportation (WVDOT) took home three out of 10 regional awards in the 2024 America’s Transportation Awards, in competition with 13 other southeastern states. The awards were presented at the Southeastern Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (SASHTO) Annual Meeting on Tuesday, August 20, 2024, in Arkansas.
Sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), AAA, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the America’s Transportation Awards competition was created almost two decades ago to showcase the tremendous projects delivered by state DOTs each year to tell the broader story on the importance of transportation. The projects nominated in this competition are making people safer, our communities stronger, our economy more efficient, and our quality of life better, all while utilizing the most innovative technology to get these projects done better and faster.
The WVDOT won the award for Quality of Life/Community Development, Medium Project for a project to replace the Grant Street Bridge in Bluefield, which reunited two sections of town that had been separated by closure of the bridge. The award for Best Use of Technology & Innovation, Large Project went to the WVDOT for the Wellsburg Bridge project, which entailed floating the main span of the massive bridge downstream on barges and lifting it into place. The WVDOT won the award for Safety, Medium Project with the US 340 Rock Fall Mitigation project, which installed safety barriers and removed dangerous rocks and debris high above US 340 near Harpers Ferry.
Grant Street Bridge
In December 2023, Gov. Jim Justice, Bluefield residents and state highway officials celebrated the opening of the Grant Street Bridge, reconnecting the city’s North End and East Side with downtown and Princeton Avenue for the first time since the structure’s closure in 2019.
The new bridge is 330 feet long and features a modern design to improve safety and traffic flow. Federal, state, and local grants funded the $10.5 million project.
“This is another example of us pulling the rope together to get a meaningful project done,” Gov. Justice said. “There were a few hurdles along the way, but we didn’t let them stop us from getting this project across the finish line, and I’m proud to see us cutting the ribbon today. Bridges are more than just crossings from one side to the other. They act as connections between people, communities, and opportunities. This new bridge symbolizes our collective commitment to develop connections and economic prosperity for the City of Bluefield.”
Opening of the new bridge reconnected a community that had effectively been geographically separated. Residents showed overwhelming support and gratitude to the state of West Virginia and the WVDOH for identifying the need for a new bridge and acknowledging their concerns.
“It means the world to me to have this bridge open,” said Bluefield resident Pamela Jeffries. I’ve never seen a community as close-knit coming up. Walking on this bridge is like walking on a new piece of ground.”
Wellsburg Bridge
In September 2021, residents of the towns of Wellsburg, West Virginia, and Brilliant, Ohio, met with local, state, and federal officials for a massive celebration on the Wellsburg Bridge connecting the two communities. It was a project that had been discussed for 100 years.
“This is an incredible day for both Wellsburg and Brilliant because we are finally opening a bridge connecting these two communities that is long overdue,” Gov. Jim Justice said. “This bridge is going to make life better for everyone who travels through West Virginia’s Northern Panhandle. This is truly an incredible day, and I’m proud to see another bridge project across the finish line. The bridge might be in the Northern Panhandle, but this is a great day for all of West Virginia.”
Flatiron Construction, headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado, was awarded an approximately $131 million contract for construction of the new bridge. The 830-foot main span of the bridge was built off-site on the bank of the Ohio River just upstream from the bridge site and floated into place.
“The Ohio River separates us, and this bridge is going to connect us,” said former West Virginia Delegate Tim Ennis. “We’re going to get really close, really quick.”
“This beautiful item that we’re going to have is going to benefit both sides of the river,” said Jason Ferguson, president of Brooke County (West Virginia) Parks and Recreation. “I think it’s going to help the whole community. I’ve been in construction for 36 years. That was a massive accomplishment, what they did.”
The project had previously won a Diamond Award for outstanding engineering from the American Council of Engineering Companies.
US 340 Rockfall Mitigation Project
In May 2023, Triton Construction Inc. was awarded a contract for $10,277,500 to remove rock and install rockfall barriers on a one-mile section of US 340 where it hugs the Shenandoah River just south of Harpers Ferry. Because of the narrowness of the two-lane road sandwiched between the bank of the river and the sheer rock cliff, it was decided that completely closing the highway for a 90-day period to remove the rock and put up barriers was the fastest and safest way to proceed.
Work was complete and the highway reopen on Friday, December 1, 2023, 10 days ahead of schedule.
West Virginia Delegate Paul Espinosa, who represents the area, said residents and travelers in the area “now have peace of mind knowing they can travel that portion of the roadway without the risk they used to experience.”
Other regional winners included:
- Georgia Department of Transportation’s Historic Rogers Bridge Pedestrian/Bike Crossing (Quality of Life/Community Development, Small Project)
- Florida Department of Transportation’s Wekiva Parkway Section 7A (Quality of Life/Community Development, Large Project)
- Arkansas Department of Transportation’s Highway 28 Bridge Rehabilitation with State Forces (Operations Excellence, Small Project)
- North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Harkers Island Bridge Replacement (Operations Excellence, Medium Project)
- Georgia Department of Transportation’s Advanced Rail Crossing Blocking Notification Project (Best Use of Technology & Innovation, Small Project)
- Tennessee Department of Transportation’s Broadway Bridge Replacement (Best Use of Technology & Innovation, Medium Project)
- Florida Department of Transportation’s Orange Blossom Trail Pedestrian Safety Improvements (Safety, Small Project)
This year, 39 state DOTs are participating in the competition. Regional winners will be considered for inclusion into the competition’s “Top 12,” which will be publicly announced in early September. These 12 projects compete for two top prizes—the Grand Prize, chosen by our independent panel of judges, and the People’s Choice Award, which is determined by the public through online voting. Both carry a $10,000 cash prize to support a transportation-related scholarship or charitable cause and will be announced at the AASHTO Annual Meeting in Philadelphia this October.
West Virginia Deputy Transportation Secretary Alanna Keller, P.E., and Transportation Secretary Jimmy Wriston, P.E., accept an America’s Transportation Award in Rogers, Arkansas.
