Washington State DOT’s winning project that involved replacing a bridge and adding high occupancy vehicle lanes on Route 520 across Lake Washington, east of Seattle.The Western Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (WASHTO) has awarded seven state departments of transportation honors for top transportation projects as regional winners for the America’s Transportation Awards.
The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the AAA motor club and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sponsor the program, which honors the best transportation projects in the categories of Quality of Life/Community Development, Best Use of Innovation and Under Budget. The program is in its ninth year.
This year, 40 state DOTs participated and submitted 84 award nominations. For the NASTO competition, 10 DOTs entered 21 transportation projects for consideration. For WASHTO’s competition 15 DOTs submitted 30 projects.
WASHTO winners include:
Quality of Life/Community Development
- The Washington State DOT won in the large group competition for its project to replace a bridge and add high occupancy vehicle lanes on Route 520 across Lake Washington, east of Seattle.
- The Oregon DOT won in the medium project group for an interchange and transit facility project on Interstate-5 in Woodburn.
- The Idaho Transportation Department won in the small project category for a project that improved travel conditions and access connecting Bannock Highway to South 5th Avenue south of Pocatello.
Best Use of Innovation
- The Texas DOT won in the large project group for its Lyndon B. Johnson Expressway project north of Dallas.
- Colorado DOT’s I-70 Mountain Express Lane project between Empire and Idaho Springs won in the medium project group.
- The South Dakota DOT Jackson Boulevard Phase II project to reconstruct a section of Hwy 44 in Rapid City won in the small project group.
Under Budget
- The Idaho Transportation Department’s Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle Program, which accelerated the construction of several transportation projects across the state, won in the large project group.
- The Colorado DOT’s project to replace six obsolete bridges along US 6 in Denver won in the medium project group.
- The North Dakota DOT’s rehabilitation of the Sorlie Bridge that connects the cities of Grand Forks, N.D., to East Grand Forks, Minn., won in the small project group.
The Northeast Association of State Transportation Officials announced their winners earlier this month. The two remaining regions, Mid America Association of Highway Transportation Officials and Southeastern Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, will announce their winners this summer at their summer meetings.
The top 10 projects from all regions with the highest overall scores will be entered into the National Grand Prize, and the People’s Choice Award will be selected by the most online public votes. Finalists will be announced at the end of September and the online voting will be available October 1-30. These winners will be announced at the American Association of Highway Transportation Officials annual meeting in November.
