Photo: AECOM

N.J. Turnpike Interchange 6-9 Widening

"We hope to eliminate the congestion that exists today," says Rich Raczynski, chief engineer with the New Jersey Turnpike Authority in Woodbridge, N.J. "And we will be relieving congestion on parallel highways and state roads, because a lot of people exit the Turnpike to get out of the traffic."

The project consists of adding 170 asphalt lane miles, improving interchanges, building 60 bridge structures, and modifying 36 others bridges. The bridges and flyover ramps are primarily steel beam with concrete decks, and the large culverts are mostly precast concrete.

The Turnpike Authority standardized engineering, so materials and design are similar in all segments, and it conducted a constructability review to catch any problems before work began.

Construction manager AECOM/GPI/PB received a $164 million contract to oversee construction of the work. AECOM/GPI/PM is a joint venture among AECOM of East Windsor, N.J.; Greenman-Pedersen of Babylon, N.Y.; and Parsons Brinckerhoff of New York.

"The scheduling is one of the most complicated I've seen," says Ralph D. Csogi, field project manager for AECOM/GPI/PB. "If one contractor falls down and gets behind schedule, it has the potential to impact the others around him."

The Turnpike Authority has awarded 14 of the 29 contracts. Thirteen more will be awarded in 2010 and two in 2011. It broke the packages into smaller jobs to enable more local contractors to participate.

"They were concerned if we issued two or three contracts in the $600 million, $700 million, $800 million range, we would shut out a lot of the contractors in New Jersey and New York and get people from other parts of the country in here," Raczynski says. "But if we kept the contracts in the $40 million, $50 million, $60 million range, for the most part, everyone would have a chance at some work."

Design, property acquisition, utility relocation and construction are all taking place simultaneously. Smaller contracts allowed some sections to begin more quickly. The work includes relocating 12 mi of three fuel and petroleum pipelines owned by private companies. Cost for pipeline relocation is $200 million.

"There's nothing glamorous with this program; it's just huge," adds John Keller, supervising engineer with the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.

The project is scheduled for completion in 2014. Work is progressing on time and on budget. About 20,000 people are working on site.

Key Players

Owner: New Jersey Turnpike Authority, Woodbridge, N.J.
Construction Manager: AECOM/GPI/PB, East Windsor, N.J .
Program Manager, Widening Design: HNTB, Wayne, N.J.
Section 1: PB Americas, Princeton, N.J. Section 2: AECOM, Piscataway, N.J. Section 3: Michael Baker Jr., Hamilton, N.J. Section 4: Louis Berger Group, Morristown, N.J. Section 5: Medina Consultants, Hackettstown, N.J. Section 6: Dewberry-Goodkind, Bloomfield, N.J. Section 7: Arora and Associates, Lawrenceville, N.J. Section 8: Edwards & Kelcey (Jacobs), Morristown, N.J.