For the second time this year, Louisiana transportation officials are evaluating proposals from contractors to construct a new bridge over the Red River in Shreveport and refurbish the existing Jimmie Davis bridge as a park. The Louisiana Dept. of Transportation and Development restarted the RFQ and RFP process in late October after naming in March three shortlisted firms—two of which dropped out.
“Unfortunately, we have very limited teams that compete in that process,” Shawn Wilson, state transportation secretary, told local business leaders in comments broadcast on Shreveport TV station KSLA. “Because we haven’t had the competitive attention that was necessary, we had to go out and re-bid the project.”