SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - People will still be able to drive over the Deh Cho Bridge by November 2011, according to the project's new manager, who announced on Wednesday that work is moving forward with a new bridge design now that Ruskin Construction has been finalized as the contractor.

Kevin McLeod, director of highways and marine with the Department of Transportation, is now in charge of the project. He said the temporary bridge will be out by the end of March and the bridge trusses will be put in place starting in August.

The remaining work involves building the concrete deck and supporting it with trusses and cables, linking the eight piers and landscaping the project.

He said he is confident the new design has been reviewed and fit for bridge code regulations.

"It's a more conventional design. You could find this kind of bridge, this truss, a thousand places in the world," he said.

The project was delayed for a year because a past design was flawed and a new design firm started from scratch with the superstructure.

When asked why the department chose to go with a sole-source contract, McLeod said the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation – the previous project manager – made the initial recommendation to go with Ruskin, and asked permission to begin negotiations with them.

He defended the decision to go with the sole-source contract, saying it made sense financially and the company had a good understanding of the project. McLeod said Ruskin "was already on site, had all (the) equipment there, knew the project inside and out, had been an intimate part of the eight piers."

McLeod said Ruskin provided a cost estimate for what they could do and the department sought an opinion from the project's engineering advisors who agreed it was a good price.

Andrew Purdy, owner and president of Ruskin Construction Ltd., said his company was signing a contract with the GNWT Wednesday. Ruskin is based in Prince George, B.C. but has an office in Hay River.

"By the end of August we'll be in full-scale assembly and we'll be assembling right through until this time next year," he said.

Purdy said his company secured good prices for the remaining steel and work materials needed, which will be transported to the site by train and truck.

The total cost of the project is now slated to be $181.4 million. The legislative assembly approved an additional $15 million in supplementary funding for the project last week.

Ruskin replaces ATCON, a New Brunswick-based construction company that has since filed for bankruptcy. The Deh Cho Bridge Corporation took ATCON off the project in December after the company said it couldn't complete the work for the agreed-upon price of $165 million.

McLeod says the project is now half completed, Ruskin has been contracted for $68.1 million to do the remaining work.

Last month, Transportation Minister Michael McLeod announced the department was taking over the duties of former project manager Andrew Gamble and Jivko Engineering of the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation.

The Deh Cho Bridge Corporation is discussing what role it will play on a day-to-day basis now that it's not managing the project. The corporation consists of a board of six directors made up of representatives from the two shareholders, the Deh Gah Got'ie Dene Band and the Fort Providence Metis Council.

The corporation was negotiating with the GNWT about what it could do and said it was still open as to whether it would be involved in inspections, surface maintenance or operating the bridge, said Kevin McLeod.

"They still have equity. They still own the land. It's still in their backyard, it's a mega-project they have influence in, there's still local businesses that want to take part in it.

"There's still folks who want to gain experience working on a major construction site." Calling it a 35-year partnership, he said, "We like working with them, we want to keep working with them."