THE TWINNING OF THE TRANS-CANADA HIGHWAY THROUGH THE PROVINCE OF NEW BRUNSWICK AND THE CONTRACTING OF OPERATIONS, MAINTENANCE, AND REHABILITATION TO THE PRIVATE SECTOR

In response to the growth in traffic, the high proportion of commercial vehicles, the need to improve highway safety and the demands of the economy, the Province decided to twin the Trans-Canada Highway (TCH) from Quebec to Nova Scotia in the early 1990’s. The first projects were built using a traditional model where the New Brunswick department of Transportation (NBDOT) managed the work at all stages of design and construction and then undertook the operation and maintenance. On the Fredericton-Moncton Highway Project (204 km), NBDOT retained a Developer/Operator to design, build, finance, operate, maintain and rehabilitate the highway for a thirty-year period. NBDOT has recently retained a Developer/Operator to design, build and finance 98 km of TCH, and to operate, maintain and rehabilitate a total of 275 km for 28 years. This new highway is scheduled to open in November 2007 and will complete the twinning of the TCH in New Brunswick from Quebec to Nova Scotia. This approach has required careful attention to the process of selecting suitable contractors for the work, and to the development of standards, specifications and performance indicators which ensure the quality of highway service and the appropriate transfer of risk and responsibility. On both projects, ISO compliant Quality and Environmental management systems are required. The Province has limited its role to auditing the performance of the developers and operators. This transfer of risk and responsibility has required NBDOT staff to adjust to a new way of managing the highway system.