Three Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) projects won regional awards in the 2025 America’s Transportation Awards competition, sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO).
“The America’s Transportation Awards shine a spotlight on the vital projects state DOTs deliver for their communities to enhance safety, expand mobility for users, deliver a better quality of life for residents and visitors, and keep our economy moving,” said AASHTO Executive Director Jim Tymon. “The America’s Transportation Awards competition continues to show us that state DOTs are able to transform communities in a variety of ways. And as Congress works toward a new federal surface transportation bill, lawmakers need to only look at the tangible benefits that states deliver to their customers through examples like these winners to see why robust federal funding to states is so important.”
Twenty-six transportation projects were submitted by seven states and the District of Columbia in the Northeast Association of State Transportation Officials (NASTO) region for this year’s competition. Projects are judged in four categories: Quality of Life/Community Development, Operations Excellence, Best Use of Technology and Innovation, and Safety.
All nominated projects first compete at the regional level against projects of their own size (small, costing up to $10 million; medium, costing between $10 million and $100 million; or large, costing more than $100 million).
The top three scoring projects from regional competitions throughout the U.S. will advance to the Top 12 and compete for two national honors in the 2025 America’s Transportation Awards. The Grand Prize will be chosen by an independent panel of judges and the People’s Choice Award will be decided through online public voting. AASHTO will reveal both winners at its annual meeting in November 2025.
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The following three projects in the New England Construction area won 2025 regional America’s Transportation Awards.
On May 2, 2024, a collision involving a flatbed tractor trailer and a tanker truck carrying 8,500 gallons of fuel on Interstate 95 led to a fire that engulfed the Fairfield Avenue Bridge in Norwalk, Connecticut, for nearly two hours, heavily damaging the two-span structure.
CTDOT worked with contractors on a round-the-clock bridge demolition and highway reopening plan — removing tons of concrete, steel, and debris, then milling and repaving the roadway. They reopened northbound I-95 lanes on the night of May 4 — just two days after the fire — and southbound lanes on May 5.
After the reopening, reconstruction of the bridge began. The emergency replacement project was awarded to Yonkers Contracting Company, Inc., of Yonkers, New York.
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The work finished in just seven months — ahead of schedule and almost $3 million under the original budget. The overall bridge replacement and demolition was completed for $16.8 million. Spanning approximately 170 feet in length, the new bridge over I-95 includes sidewalks on both sides.
“I’m incredibly proud of the exceptional teamwork and dedication of the Connecticut Department of Transportation and construction crews to expedite this project and reopen the bridge months ahead of schedule,” said CTDOT Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto. “Every partner on this project overperformed the ambitious deadlines we set in May. This is a remarkable achievement and demonstrates what we can get done for the traveling public when federal, state, and local partners share a common purpose.”
The Derby-Shelton Bridge carries Bridge Street (State Road 712) over the Housatonic River between the downtown areas of Shelton and Derby, Connecticut. Originally built in 1918, the substructure of the historic bridge remained in good condition, but other elements — including the pavement structure, parapet walls, and lighting — had deteriorated over time.
Designed by AECOM under contract to the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments, the bridge improvement project aimed to renovate and rehabilitate elements along the top of the structure while enhancing aesthetics and connectivity for pedestrians and cyclists. CTDOT assumed administration of the $7 million project, awarding the construction contract to Mohawk Northeast, Inc., headquartered in Plantsville, Connecticut.
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The project included:
- Replacement of bridge parapet walls — New concrete parapet walls replicate the original, historic style. A decorative railing, matching the style of Veterans Memorial Park in Shelton, adds safety for pedestrians.
- Roadway improvements — These include adding a second eastbound lane, replacing the bituminous pavement and underlaying concrete deck, and narrowing the shoulders to allow for the additional lane. An intersection in Derby was also adjusted to include a dedicated right-turn lane.
- Enhanced pedestrian and bicycle facilities — A larger pedestrian space was created on the south side, alongside a track that separates cyclists from vehicular traffic and pedestrians. Textured pavement and planted buffer zones define the spaces. These new facilities connect with the Derby Greenway and Shelton’s Riverwalk.
- Lighting upgrades — Outdated lighting was replaced with period-style decorative lights along the parapet walls. The new lights enhance the bridge’s nighttime visibility and adhere to dark-sky guidelines.
The rehabilitated bridge provides a more visually appealing gateway for both cities, enhances safety for non-vehicular travelers, and preserves traffic flow between the two revitalized downtowns.
The number of fatalities caused by wrong way drivers on Connecticut highways jumped by 500 percent in 2022. But with over 700 ramps on the interstate system, CTDOT faced significant challenges in identifying countermeasures and prioritizing their deployment.
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To address the problem, they first conducted an analysis of ramp locations, especially where on- and off-ramps are located on the same side of the road (since national research shows these locations have a higher risk of wrong way events) and ramp locations close to establishments that serve alcohol (since impaired drivers are more likely to mistakenly enter the highway in the wrong direction). Each ramp location received a risk factor assessment to develop priority rankings.
At a cost of $40 million, CTDOT implemented wrong way detection and notification systems for 225 priority locations. The systems use video cameras to detect vehicles traveling in the wrong direction. If a vehicle is detected, wrong way signs outlined with multiple sets of red lights begin flashing to alert the driver. The system also sends notifications to the CTDOT Highway Operations Center and local state police in real time.
In the last year, these systems activated more than 300 times and helped cut the number of fatal crashes from 13 in 2022 to six in 2024 while reducing fatalities from 23 in 2022 to 13 in 2024. CTDOT is now increasing collaboration with other state agencies and municipal leaders, especially law enforcement, to target other high-risk locations.
This project tied for first in the Safety category for medium-sized projects with the Delaware Department of Transportation’s SR 299, SR 1 to Catherine Street widening project.
