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105.14 OPENING SECTIONS OF PROJECT TO TRAFFIC . Opening of sections of the work to
traffic prior to completion of the entire Contract may be desirable from a traffic service standpoint; or may be necessary due to conditions inherent in the work, or by changes in the Contractor's work schedule; or necessary due to conditions or events unforeseen at the time of the Contract award. Such openings to traffic shall be made when ordered by the Engineer. Under no condition shall the openings constitute acceptance of the work or a waiver of any provisions of the Contract. The Contract will state which sections shall be opened to traffic prior to completion of the Project. On any section opened by order of the Engineer, whether covered in the Contract or not, the Contractor shall not be required to assume any expense in maintaining the road for such traffic. Such expense will be borne by t he Department, or compensated for in accordance with Subsection 109.04; Differing Site Conditions, Changes, Extra Work and Force Account Work . If, however, the Contractor is dilatory in completing shoulders, drainage structures, or other features of the work, the Engineer may notify the Contractor in writing and establish a period of time in which the work should be complet ed. If the Contractor is dilatory, or fails to make a reasonable effort toward completion in this period of time, the Engineer may order all or a portion of the project opened to traffic. On sections which are so ordered to be opened, the Contractor shall conduct the remainder of the construction operations to cause the least obstruction to traffic. Costs incurred due to the dilatory nature of the Contractor's response to instructions of the Engineer shall be borne solely by the Contractor. On any section opened to traffic under the above conditions, whether stated in the Contract or opened by necessity of Contractor's operations, or unforeseen necessity, damage to the highway not attributable to traffic that occu rs (except slides) shall be repaired at the expense of the Contractor. The removal of slides shall be done by the Contractor on a basis determined by the Engineer prior to removal. Unless otherwise specified, the Contractor shall schedule pavement removal such that no location shall remain unpaved for longer than ten (10) working days. This means that once the Contractor commences with the removal of existing full depth pavement from any location where traffic flow is to be maintained, he must restore the roadway with no less than a full depth bituminous base course at that particular location within 10 working days. In the case of partial depth pavement removal (cold planning/milling), the Contractor shall schedule the pavement removal such that no location shall remain without a new bituminous asphalt layer for longer than seven (7) calendar days.
105.15 FURNISHING RIGHT-OF-WAY . The Department is responsible for securing
Rights-of-Way in advance of construction. Exceptions will be indicated in the Contract. 105.16 FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ROADWAY OR STRUCTURE . If the Contractor fails to comply with the provisions of Subsection 105.13; Maintenance During Construction , the Engineer will immediately notify the Contractor of such non-compliance. If the Contractor fails to remedy unsatisfactory maintenance within 24 hours after receipt of such notice, the Engineer 1−40 may immediately proceed to maintain the project. The entire cost of this maintenance will be deducted from monies due or to become due the Contractor.
105.17 Acceptance .
a.Partial Acceptance . When the Contractor substantially completes a unit or portion of the work in accordance with the definition contained in Subsection 101.71; Substantial Completion , the Contractor may request an inspection of that unit or portion of the project. The Engineer's inspection shall disclose the following:
1.Work not started, but required to be completed.
2.Incomplete work, the completion of which is required.
3.Unsatisfactory work, the correction of which is required. The Engineer shall provide the Contractor with a report containing the results of this inspection along with instruction for completing the construction of the unit or portion of the work under consideration. The Contractor shall immedi ately comply with these instructions. Upon completing and correcting the work, the Contractor may request another inspection. If, upon completion of this second inspection, the Engineer finds that the unit or portion of the work has been satisfactorily completed in compliance with the Contract, the Engineer may accept that unit or portion of the work as physically completed, and the Contractor may be relieved of further responsibility for such unit or portion of the work, provided that the Contractor agrees to deliver full documentation, certificates and proofs of compliance for said work during final acceptance. If, however, during this second inspection the Engineer finds any incomplete or unsatisfactory work, no partial acceptance will be granted, and acceptance of the unit or portion of the work must await the final acceptance of the entire project. Partial acceptance shall not void or alter any of the terms or provisions of the Contract.
b.Final Acceptance . Final acceptance of the project will be made by the Engineer on behalf of the State when the Contractor has completed the project in full accordance with the definition contained in Subsection 101.09; Completion . The procedure for obtaining final acceptance follows:
1.When the Contractor determines that the work of the Contract is substantially completed in accordance with the definition of Subsection 12.101.71; Substantial Completion , the Contractor shall notify the Engineer of this fact.
2.Within 30 calendar days of the Contractor's official notice, the Engineer will schedule a time and date for an inspection.
3.The Engineer's inspection shall take place at the time and date established in subparagraph (2), above.
Source: Rhode Island Standard Specifications (Bluebook), 2024 Edition. Pages 53–54 of 826.