I-10 project in Jefferson Davis Parish wins NAPA award

The National Asphalt Paving Association (NAPA) recently announced the winners of its 2004 Quality in Construction Awards for excellence in construction of an asphalt pavement.

Diamond B. Construction Co. LLC of Alexandria and the Louisiana Department of Transportation were recognized for the rubblizing and overlay of I-10 west of the Jefferson Davis Parish Line.

The presentations were made at a special ceremony at the association's 50th Annual Convention "Pavement Paradise" on the Big Island of Hawaii.

The four-lane rural interstate was built quickly, with the contractor finishing the project five days ahead of the 169-day schedule. The 7-mi. road was extremely smooth and met new ride quality specifications.

The Quality in Construction Awards recognize Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) pavements of excellence.

"NAPA selects the award recipients using a known set of standards that have been shown to give good results," said Charles F. Potts, chairman of the NAPA Board of Directors. "This award demonstrates the high quality of work that the HMA industry is achieving."

Transportation construction market strong in February, latest ARTBA report finds

The transportation construction market continued to show exceptional strength in February, with the value of work performed on projects up nearly 17% over February 2004, according to the top economist for the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA).

"The $5.4 billion of construction work performed on transportation projects was an all-time record for any February, normally one of the weaker months of the year for transportation construction," said William Buechner, ARTBA's vice president for economics and research.

The data are contained in the association's "Value of Transportation Construction Put in Place" report. Year-to-date through February, more than $10.6 billion in construction work has been performed on transportation projects - 14% more than during the first two months of 2004.

The strongest growth occurred in the two largest transportation markets, highways and airports, up 18% and 26% respectively so far this year, Buechner said.

Established in 1902, ARTBA represents the U.S. transportation construction industry before Congress, the White House, federal agencies, the news media and general public.