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The McAuliffe administration, thought the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), has issued a notice to terminate its contract with US 460 Mobility Partners regarding the delivery of the Route 460 project in southeastern Virginia.
Transportation Secretary Layne stated:
"The Virginia Department of Transportation, with the support of the McAuliffe administration, has provided a notice of termination to US 460 Mobility Partners for Route 460 construction. The Commonwealth has determined it is in the taxpayers' best interest to terminate the contract. VDOT tried to work with the contractor to deliver the revised project in a cost effective manner. These efforts proved unsuccessful. The state will aggressively pursue all options available to do what is best for the public interest."
The contract was awarded in late 2012 under the previous administration to Ferrovial and American Infrastructure (US 460 Mobility Partners) to design and build a new 55-mile limited access highway that would parallel the existing Route 460 from Suffolk to Petersburg.
In January 2013, US 460 Mobility Partners achieved financial close of the U.S. Route 460 Corridor Improvements Project (DBF). The consortium also signed the US$1.393 million contract.
Under the direction of Governor Terry McAuliffe, Layne suspended contract work in March 2014 after it became apparent that the alignment would not receive a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers because of significant wetland impacts.
Following the contract suspension, all work was focused solely on identifying a permittable project. By February of 2015, VDOT the Corps and the Federal Highway Administration identified a different alignment that would have less wetland impacts and could qualify for a permit.