CTRMA’s Heiligenstein Says MoPac Contractor Could Face Additional Costs of $20 Million-$30 Million

Community Impact Newspaper provides a detailed timeline and breakdown of the MoPac express lane project. CTRMA Executive Director Mike Heiligenstein tells the newspaper his agency has learned “quite a few lessons” from the conditions and issues that have caused delays in the project’s completion, “including the need for more oversight on complicated elements, such as the express lane underpasses that will connect to Cesar Chavez and Fifth streets.” Heiligenstein adds that the agency’s contractor, CH2M, “recommended the underpasses as part of the design-build process” and “drastically underestimated” its costs, particularly the costs for the underpasses. “I wouldn’t be surprised if [the cost] was an additional $20 million-$30 million. It’s their responsibility,” Heiligenstein says.