PennDOT Secretary Barry J. Schoch announced Monday that PennDOT has finalized all terms for the department's $899 million Rapid Bridge Replacement Project, clearing the way for construction to begin this summer on the project to replace 558 bridges across the state.

"This is an important milestone in the state's most ambitious public-private partnership initiative to date," Schoch said.In October 2014, Penn-DOT selected Plenary Walsh Keystone Partners and its team of 11 Pennsylvania-based subcontractors to lead the project.The team will manage the bridges' design, construction and maintenance for 25 years after construction under the partnership contract. It will also be responsible for securing the capital necessary for construction, which will begin in the summer, and all 558 bridges must be replaced within 36 months. PennDOT will maintain ownership of the bridges.The partnership will deliver significant savings, allow PennDOT to replace the bridges more quickly than under the agency's traditional procurement model, and minimize the impact on motorists.The average project cost per bridge for design, construction and maintenance is $1.6 million. Through PennDOT's standard process, the cost to design, construct and maintain a bridge for a total of 28 years would average more than $2 million, Schoch said.To see the bridges included and to learn more about the project, visit

www.P3forPA.pa.gov or

www.PARapidBridges.com.The initiative was approved by the Public-Private Transportation Partnership Board on Sept. 27, 2013.