The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) in the US has sought a request for qualifications (RFQ) for the $818m Horseshoe Project, which will provide critical transportation infrastructure in the heart of Dallas.

The RFQ has been issued to seek proposals from interested bidders to design, build and potentially perform capital maintenance on the the project.

Bill Meadows, TxDOT Commissioner, said: "This project is made possible by legislation passed this year, which provided transportation stakeholders with additional tools in the form of design-build authorisation, as well as additional Proposition 12 funding.

"The new tools provide the opportunity to close the project funding gap and construct the project at least two years sooner than conventional project development methods could."

The project involves the upgrading of Interstate-30 bridge, part of the Mixmaster and both the north and southbound Interstate-35E bridges.

Margaret McDermott bridges form a fixed design component in the project, comprising of frontage roads and 1125ft of integrated pedestrian and lanes on the IH portion of it.

Horseshoe Project get its name from its U-shape and was originally a part of Project Pegasus, which also included the expansion of Lower Stemmons and the Canyon area.

It will improve existing infrastructure that was originally constructed between 1958 and 1962, reducing congestion in downtown Dallas, which is one of the most congested bottlenecks in the US, with more than 350,000 vehicles a day using it.

Interested bidders are expected to submit RFQ by 31 January, 2012, allowing the project to start by spring 2013 and be completed by late 2016.

The development is part of TxDOT’s strategy to harness private sector expertise on a design-build and maintenance basis, which will prove more cost-effective.