The city of Spokane has awarded a $570,000 contract to Arc Electric & Lighting Corp., of Spokane, to lay about 25,300 linear feet of fiber-optic cable along Third Avenue between Division and Maple streets.

The cable will transfer information from intelligent transportation devices, such as traffic cameras and other equipment, which are used to provide traffic information to transportation officials and the public, says Ann Deasy, the city's public information coordinator.

The city awarded the contract to Arc Electric after the original low bidder, Aztech Electric Inc., of Spokane, withdrew its bid of $385,600, Deasy says.

While the project's engineer originally estimated the cost of the work to be around $1.1 million, Corey Thompson, a project manager at Arc Electric, says it will cost less because the materials prices weren't as high as expected.

Deasy says traffic obstructions on Third Avenue will be mostly minimal during the project because the vaults under the street where conduits will be laid are already in place. She adds, however, that "motorists may encounter some lane closures and obstructions while crews are working in that area."

Thompson says his team members won't have to tear up much of the asphalt on Third because they can pull most of the cables through existing infrastructure from above the ground.

Deasy says that the work most likely will begin within the next month and will take about two months to complete.

The installation of the conduits is being funded by the U.S. Highway Safety Improvement Program, Deasy says.