The New York Thruway Authority awarded the $3.1 billion contract to construct the new Tappan Zee Bridge to Tappan Zee Constructors. Three proposals (totaling 750,000 pages) were submitted.
What does it take to win such a job? First, give yourself a relevant name. (Tappan Zee Constructors is a consortium of four companies including Fluor Enterprises and Traylor Bros. Inc.) Next, deliver the lowest bid and the shortest construction time (5 years, 2.5 months – about 8 months shorter than the others). The winner’s claim to fame is the “Left Coast Lifter.” It’s a floating crane that can lift steel 12 times the weight of the Statue of Liberty (nice reference) and doesn’t need as much space for dredging (only 951,000 cubic yards). Promising the new bridge won’t need major repairs for another 100 years must have sealed the deal, though barring some wild medical breakthroughs, none of the negotiators will attend the centennial in 2119.
