ConDig (25-Aug-17).  Kiewit Meridiam Partners (KMP) has won a $1.2 billion contract to design, build and finance the revamp of I-70 in Denver, Colorado.

Under the deal with the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), the consortium will upgrade a 10-mile stretch of I-70 east of downtown, add one new Express Lane in each direction between I-25 and Chambers Road and remove an aging 53-year-old viaduct.

The project also features the lowering of the interstate between Brighton and Colorado boulevards and the placing of a four-acre park over a portion of the lowered interstate between Clayton and Columbine streets.

The contract also involves operating and maintaining Central 70 for 30 years.

CDOT said that contract talks are set to begin soon, with KMP slated to be fully on board by next year, following financial close this winter.

Construction is scheduled to kickoff in the spring of next year and will take four years to complete.

In addition to lead partners Kiewit and Meridiam, KMP team members include design lead WSP, formerly Parsons Brinckerhoff, Jacobs and operator Jorgensen.

The CDOT said four groups had tendered for the public-private partnership project.

“CDOT sought a partner that would deliver Central 70 on budget, on time, and with technical excellence and innovation. Kiewit Meridiam Partners has demonstrated that they can meet this challenge while minimizing impacts to those who travel, work and live along I-70,” said CDOT executive director Shailen Bhatt.