On the June 9 Wake Up Call host Rick Moore talks with reporter Sean Tubbs of Charlottesville Tomorrow about the history of the bypass since the late 80s, the politics of the bypass, the latest news about it, VDOT’s reasons for accepting a flawed design bid that increased the cost by millions, and much more.
Yes, the Southern Terminus is a bait and switch. All of the other contractors grumbled and American Infrastructure filed a formal complaint that the Skanska-Branch design did not meet the state’s requirements. There was a $78 million difference between the low and high bids, or 60 percent of Skanska’s low bid design and almost immediately VDOT was working on a new design which will cost taxpayers another $56 million (a figure given us by bypass proponent, The Daily Progress).
Then, there are issues with the Northern Terminus, issues with Ashwood Boulevard, issues with historic cemeteries and probably other issues which will cost we taxpayers more money that the state and nation has to borrow. The only return on investment study indicates that for the $300 plus million that taxpayers are being forced to eat, we will see only $8 million in benefits.
Where are the fiscal conservatives?