Nolan County Safety Rest Area

The Nolan County Safety Rest Area project is 83-acre site located on IH-20 east of Sweetwater, TX with an estimated construction cost of approximately $35 million. The project was for the construction of site improvements for new rest areas on the north and south sides of IH-20 including earthwork, drainage improvements, concrete paving for car and truck parking, sidewalk and ADA ramps, asphalt entrance and exit ramps to IH-20, realignment of existing frontage roads, illumination, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), road signs, pavement markings, and SWPPP. As prime consultant, R2M was responsible for daily inspection, coordinating material testing and quality assurance with our lab subconsultant, reviewing and approving submittals, addressing RFIs, resolving field issues, coordinating with TxDOT and the design consultant to resolve design errors and omissions, coordinating utility adjustments, and conducting weekly progress meetings with the contractor. R2M also reviewed cost information and coordinated change orders, coordinated with our subconsultant for review and approval of the contractor’s monthly schedule updates, input daily diary entries and pay item quantities in Site Manager, reviewed and approved monthly pay estimates, maintained project records, and managed project closeout.

A major issue that arose during construction was the delay in the relocation of electrical distribution and transmission lines by the utility owner. To resolve the issue, R2M coordinated with TxDOT and the contractor to identify construction changes that could be implemented to keep the project moving forward until the electrical lines could be relocated. The project also had several design issues that R2M worked to identify early so design changes could be coordinated with the design consultant and TxDOT to minimize delays to the project schedule. R2M also coordinated with the contractor and TxDOT to identify construction changes that could be made to save costs to offset cost increases due to design issues. The construction is currently scheduled to be completed in early September and ahead of schedule.