Design and Construction Report staff writer
The City of Raleigh has awarded a $64.7 million contract to Fred Smith Co. of Raleigh to construct the largest portion of the city’s first bus rapid transit (BRT) line, a 5.4-mile corridor along New Bern Avenue.
The contract, approved by City Council on Oct. 7, covers work between Poole Road and Interstate 440 and includes construction of dedicated median bus lanes.
The project had faced delays as the city struggled for more than a year to attract bidders, but with major contracts now secured, construction is set to accelerate.
In July, the council awarded the first contract, valued at $28.7 million, to Rifenburg North Carolina. That phase includes paving, sidewalk, and utility work along New Bern Avenue and Wilmington, Blount and Edenton streets between downtown Raleigh and Poole Road.
The third and final contract, expected to go out for bid before the end of 2025, will continue improvements east of I-440 and deliver station construction across the entire route.
When complete, the New Bern Avenue BRT line will be the first of its kind in North Carolina. It will connect downtown Raleigh with WakeMed’s main campus and a new park-and-ride lot at New Hope Road, serving one of the city’s busiest existing bus corridors.
The project is part of Raleigh’s larger transit expansion program, which ultimately aims to create a 20-mile BRT network across four corridors.
