Bids well below previous estimates were received recently by the Connecticut Department of Transportation for the first major construction contract for the New Britain-Hartford Busway.

Estimates for the work ranged as high as $35 million, but the lowest bid came in at $26.7 million from Manafort Brothers Inc., of Plainville, Conn. Manafort’s bid will be reviewed over the next 60 days before the contract is awarded and the work will begin in 2012.

“These very favorable bids were a welcome surprise for us and appear to signal a favorable bidding climate for the building of the Busway,” said DOT Commissioner James P. Redeker. “Contractors are clearly ’hungry’ for work and are submitting very competitive bids.”

This first contract begins with the construction of the largest Busway station, the Downtown New Britain Station at Main Street. This segment of the Busway will be constructed from the station northerly along an abandoned rail line, over Route 9 on a new bridge, to Stanley Street, a distance of approximately 0.7 mi. (1.1 km). The off-ramp from Route 72 to Route 71 will be realigned to allow express buses from south and west of New Britain to enter the station area. The on-ramp to Route 9 will be realigned to accommodate the relocated off-ramp.

Six companies submitted bids and all but one bid were below the previous estimate of $35 million. The bids ranged from $26.7 million to $36.8 million, with five bids below $28.2 million. The bids were opened Nov. 9.

The New Britain-Hartford Busway will be a dedicated Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) facility along a 9.4-mi. (15 km) corridor between downtown New Britain and downtown Hartford. There will be 11 stops along the way.

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