The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) has launched a search for qualified teams to build a new State Route 520 floating bridge across Lake Washington. The new six-lane floating bridge is fully funded and scheduled to open in 2014.

Design-build teams interested in the $700 million to $900 million project are invited to submit statements of qualification to WSDOT by Sept. 30.

“We want to hire the best design-build team to build a safer SR 520 floating bridge,” said Washington Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond. “We expect to take advantage of a competitive bidding environment when we select a contractor early next year.”

The request for qualifications is available on the WSDOT website.

Contractors and consultants are invited to attend an informational meeting next week. WSDOT engineers will be available to answer questions about the bidding process and the project.

The meeting will be from 1-3 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 25 at the University of Washington, Warren G. Magnuson Health Sciences Center, D-Wing, Room 209, 1075 N.E. Pacific St., Seattle.

Design-build is a type of contract that combines project design and construction together into a single contract. A designer and contractor combine forces to submit a detailed design proposal with a fixed price.

WSDOT will issue a request for proposals for the project in October and allow qualified teams to submit proposals. Final proposals and bids for the project will be due in February 2011. WSDOT will choose the design-build team with the best apparent value based on their technical scores and bid price.

Construction of the floating bridge is scheduled to begin in 2012.