The American Council of Engineering Companies of Vermont (ACEC/VT) annually sponsor an Engineering Excellence Awards Program to showcase exemplary engineering projects completed in the state. A panel of judges comprised of planners, engineers, and construction professionals selects award winners from submitted entries. DuBois & King (D&K) received a Grand Award in the Environmental category for a water system improvement project in Proctor, Vermont, and a Merit Award in the Studies, Planning, and Consulting category for a bicycle and pedestrian plan for Essex, Vermont. The awards were presented at the annual Engineering Excellence Awards banquet held at the ECHO Leahy Center in Burlington on June 11. Following are brief summaries of the award winning projects.
The Town of Proctor was issued an Assurance of Discontinuance (AOD) by the state, which mandated compliance with the Stage 1 Disinfection Byproduct Rule (DBPR). Prior to D&K’s involvement, the Town had embarked on a multi-year, multi-contract water system upgrade project totaling over $6 million to bring the system into compliance. When bids were received for two concurrent contracts, the combined total exceeded the project budget by 25% and the Town rejected the bids. With the AOD deadline looming, D&K was retained to assist the Town in developing an approach to reduce costs and enable the projects to advance. D&K broke the two original contracts into three, redesigned and simplified certain project components, and re-bid the projects. These efforts resulted in $600,000 in savings to the Town. Construction was completed prior to the AOD deadline, bringing the Proctor water system into compliance with the DBPR, and avoiding potential enforcement action associated with the AOD. D&K provided design phase and construction administration and inspection services.
DuBois & King’s transportation planners worked with Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) and the Town and Village of Essex, Vermont, to develop the Essex Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan. With funding from CCRPC’s Technical Assistance Program, an energetic group of Town, Village, and Regional representatives worked with D&K to develop the twenty-year plan. The plan identified both small and large scope implementation strategies. Taking advantage of numerous recent innovations in bicycle and pedestrian design, the plan provides cost-effective techniques and identifies both high cost “big ticket” projects and smaller “DIY” interventions that municipalities or developers can incorporate into ongoing projects at little additional cost. The plan embraces the reality that big changes can arise from the collective results of a number of small actions.
The plan was the first in Vermont to recognize that bicycle networks need to be planned for a broad range of abilities and levels of confidence and identified two networks: direct routes for more confident cyclists and Neighborhood Networks for the other “60%”. The second network will build on the existing network of shared use paths and bicycle lanes by establishing bicycle boulevards, where traffic calmed local streets are connected into a low speed bicycle network. This approach makes the best use of existing infrastructure, reducing cost and right of way and environmental impacts.
Communities with well-planned bicycle networks are highly attractive to millennials, and Vermont’s economic future depends on attracting younger residents to offset the state’s aging population. Cities and towns are realizing that a bicycle and walking network is a valuable community asset, which:
- Attracts new residents and prospective investments
- Promotes sustainable, zero-emission transportation
- Facilitates active travel for all ages and abilities and promotes community health
- Offers affordable transportation choices for those without a car or who choose not drive
The plan provides a set of maps and a project database that the communities can refer to as opportunities for implementation arise. The plan includes a “toolbox” of design options and other measures that can be worked into projects to result in a more complete multimodal network for the Town and Village. The plan provides guidance on potential funding that will serve as a component of municipal capital planning over the next 20 years. The plan enjoyed great community support and was unanimously endorsed by each municipality’s planning commission and governing body. The regional bicycling and walking advocacy group Local Motion has been distributing the plan to other towns in the region as a model for best practices in community bicycle and pedestrian planning.
