Peach Tree Times

The Georgia Department of Transportation has received high praise for the Macon-Bibb Design Build Bridges project that replaced both the Pio Nono Avenue and College Street brides. 

In a news release announcing the award, Russell R. McMurry, P.E., Georgia's DOT Commissioner, said his agency was "honored."

"This recognition highlights the department's continued commitment to providing the safest and most innovative transportation system for Georgia's residents and visitors," McMurry said in the release. 

The Southern Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials awarded the "Quality of Life/Community Development, Small Project" award to the Georgia DOT, according to the release.

The release stated that the Georgia DOT learned they'd tied for the top spot at the Southern Association of Highway and Transportation Officials' annual meeting in Orlando, Florida. In total, 80 projects from 35 states were nominated.

Georgia DOT said the bridge replacements included in the Macon-Bibb Design Build Bridges project were necessary to give double-stacked rail cars going between the bustling Ports of Savannah and Brunswick the vertical clearance they required on the Norfolk Southern Railway. 

The release stated that both bridges have since reopened to traffic, with the Pio Nono Avenue bridge construction completed in less than a month and resuming normal traffic flow in June 2020, and work was finished on the College Street Bridge in February 2021.