State Route Shoulder & Median Mowing - Wilkes County

The North Carolina Department of Transportation, Division 11, is soliciting bids for shoulder and median mowing along State Highway System routes in Wilkes County, with questions due October 30, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. and bids due November 18, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. Pre-qualification is mandatory for all contractors and subcontractors, and firms must obtain approval at least two business days before bid submission. The contract includes no MBE/WBE goal requirement.

Scope covers routine and cleanup mowing across approximately 1,299 road miles on Interstate, Primary Divided, Primary Undivided, Secondary Divided, Secondary Paved, and Secondary Unpaved routes, with two to four mowing cycles annually plus cleanup and trimming cycles. Vegetation must be cut to four inches. The contractor furnishes all equipment, tools, materials, transportation, and labor, and must maintain at least four 60"-90" mowers, one 60"-72" zero-turn mower, supervisor and service vehicles, and ANSI/ISEA 107-2004 Class 2 safety vests for all personnel. Full and half batwing mowers are prohibited on undivided routes. Work is restricted to daylight hours with exclusions for holiday weekends and special events, and must comply with mowing moratoriums under North Carolina Senate Bill 391 (May 1-31). Work zone traffic control follows the Standard Specifications for Roads and Structures.

The contract is effective March 15, 2027 through December 31, 2027, with up to four additional one-year extensions at NCDOT's discretion. Unit bid adjustments on extensions are based on the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index for the "Services" category. Payment is monthly on actual quantities completed and accepted, measured in shoulder miles for routine and cleanup mowing and in acres for additional mowing. Within fourteen days of award, the contractor must elect either 100% performance and payment bonds or a 6% retainage. A monthly fuel price adjustment applies against diesel prices, using a base index of $5.0299 per gallon as of October 1, 2026. Liquidated damages include $500 per day for work performed during mowing moratoriums, $250 per day per tractor for failing to field minimum required mowers, $500 per tractor per incident for using prohibited mowers, and penalties of $100 to $500 for signage, contactability, turf damage, and mailbox damage violations. Responses to questions will be issued by addendum.