When transportation projects are in development, engineers come up with an estimate for what the work will cost. However, the exact numbers are not known until a government agency puts the project out for bid.
For instance, the City of Charlottesville put a request this past spring for contractors to bid on a project to reconfigure the intersection of Monticello Avenue and 2nd Street SE. The Virginia Department of Transportation calculated a cost estimate of $1.4 million but the only bid from Curtis Contracting was over budget.
When the city tried again, a decision was made to bundle this project with two others in an attempt to attract more responses. This includes changes to the intersections of 10th Street and Grady Avenue as well as Preston Avenue and Harris Street…