Wellington County has awarded the tender for major repairs to the Macton bridge – at what at first seemed a bargain price.
Roads committee chairman Carl Hall told council on May 29 he expects the work on the Princess Elizabeth bridge on County Road 12 – known locally as the Macton bridge – will start very soon. The bridge was built in the late 1940s and named in honour of the woman who became Queen of England and Canada. It is about 1.5km away from Macton.
McLean Taylor Construction, Ltd. of St. Mary’s, won the job, with a bid of $758,957. The county estimate was about $1-million for the project.
Manager of purchasing and risk management services Mark Bolzon said in his report to county council the work includes the replacement of the existing deck slab, replacement of the overhead steel wind bracing trusses, replacement of the vertical members in the main trusses, replacement of two bearings, substructure repairs, hot mix asphalt, concrete curb and gutter, steel beam guide rail, and other miscellaneous works.
The bridge had been in poor condition after an overloaded truck from Quebec became stuck under it. That resulted in a huge fine to the company, and the bridge suffered some damage. As well, it was hit a few years later, and the county decided to replace it.
There was one other bid to complete the work, by ConCreate USL Ltd. of Bolton. That bid, which was not accepted, was closer to the county estimate, at $973,465.
The county received some financial aid under the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Initiative (MIII). It applied for and received $1-million for the work from the provincial government.
But despite the low construction bid, there are unlikely to be any major savings. The county’s cost breakdown for the work includes:
– $21,100 for previously incurred engineering fees;
– $14,0000 for engineering fees;
– $759,000 for the bridge tender; and
– $104,000 for additional work and a contingency fund.
That brings the total to $1,025,000.
The county will cover its $25,000 share through its operating budget of 2006, and use the provincial grant to cover the rest of the work.
