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Scarsella Bros. Inc. of Kent, Wash., has been awarded the $40.9 million low-bid contract for the third phase of the U.S. Route 20 project near Eddyville, Oregon Department of Transportation officials announced Monday.

When the entire $365.8 million project finishes in fall 2016, the stretch of highway will bypass the current U.S. 20 for 5.5 miles and provide motorists a straighter shot between Corvallis and Newport.

Scarsella, which worked on an earlier phase, is expected to complete this one in two years, ODOT spokesman Rick Little said. The biggest challenge will be moving roughly 2.5 million yards of rock during a 75-to-90-day construction window this summer, he said.

The contractor also will build the equivalent of 20 miles of horizontal drains to reduce landslide risk, install 400 ground anchors and build rock buttresses, Little said. Crews also will finish constructing the highway; roughly 2.8 miles worth is completed.

“They will be creating the outline of the final alignment at the level they want,” he said.

ODOT on May 22 will release a $3 million bid package for the project, Little added. The package will include habitat improvements for fish and other wildlife.

The project’s fourth phase – including paving, landscaping and signage – will take place in 2016.