Alameda Corridor Agency Schedules Construction of Pacific Coast Highway Grade Separation.

Business Editors

LOS ANGELES COUNTY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 13, 2003

Aiming to reduce traffic congestion and cut air pollution, full-scale construction of the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) Grade Separation is scheduled to begin in May, the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority (ACTA) announced Thursday.

ACTA, the public agency that built the $2.4 billion Alameda Corridor freight rail expressway on time and on budget, made the announcement after the Governing Board selected Yeager Skanska, Inc. as the project's prime contractor.

Under a unique agreement with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), ACTA is managing design and construction of the $107 million PCH Grade Separation. The project is funded by Caltrans ($79 million), ACTA ($14 million) and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority ($14 million).

The PCH Grade Separation calls for a half-mile-long bridge to carry PCH traffic over Alameda Corridor mainlines, a branch rail line and Alameda Street in the Los Angeles port-area community of Wilmington. It is the only location along the 20-mile route of the Alameda Corridor where street traffic and rail traffic still conflict.

Construction will require the closure of PCH between the Terminal Island Freeway and Coil Avenue, starting in May and lasting until Spring 2004. Traffic will be routed around the construction zone, utilizing Terminal Island Freeway, Sepulveda Boulevard, Alameda Street, Colon Street and Coil Avenue. Access to all businesses in the construction zone is expected to be maintained at all times. The bridge is expected to open to traffic in Spring 2004, followed by full project completion in Summer 2004. ACTA is working closely with the Los Angeles Police Department to enforce rules prohibiting commercial trucks from using residential streets in the construction zone.

ACTA is taking extensive steps to minimize the inconveniences that are inevitable with a public works project of this magnitude. For example, traffic signals will be added and synchronized, turn lanes added and roads restriped to enhance traffic flow on the detour route. Outreach teams are going door to door in the area to alert residents and businesses of the construction and re-routing schedules.

"Like the Alameda Corridor Project itself, this is a great example of a successful partnership amongst agencies. While it is unfortunate that the problem at PCH and Alameda wasn't addressed in the original ACTA plan, this grade separation will finally relieve the congestion that has plagued the Wilmington community for years," said Los Angeles Councilwoman Janice Hahn, chairwoman of the ACTA Governing Board.

"The Wilmington community, particularly the neighborhood council, worked closely with ACTA staff on this construction and detour plan, and we are now asking for the patience of the people who live and work in Wilmington while this project is completed," Hahn said.

Hahn, who represents the port area on the Los Angeles City Council, has worked closely with project engineers to limit detours and other construction-related impacts on the community.

"The Pacific Coast Highway Grade Separation will allow the region to take full advantage of the economic benefits of international trade while enhancing our quality of life through reduced traffic congestion and emissions from idling vehicles," said Long Beach Vice Mayor Frank Colonna, vice chairman of the ACTA Governing Board.

The project area is heavily traveled by truck traffic hauling cargo containers to and from the neighboring Port of Los Angles and Port of Long Beach, the two busiest ports in the nation. By eliminating conflicts between street traffic and train traffic, the project will ease congestion, reduce emissions from idling and slow-moving trucks, and bolster public safety by enhancing access of emergency vehicles such as ambulances, fire trucks and police vehicles.

Multiple agencies had, for more than a decade, planned grade separations at the location, but one was never built. ACTA, which opened the $2.4 billion Alameda Corridor freight rail expressway on time and on budget in April 2002, became involved with the PCH Grade Separation at the urging of public officials when it became clear that the project would not be built before the Alameda Corridor opened.

Yeager Skanska, based in Riverside, Calif., was the low bidder among 11 companies bidding for the prime construction contract. The total contract value is $25.1 million; the balance of the $107 million project cost goes toward engineering, traffic management and other related work. The construction contract includes financial penalties if work is not completed on schedule.

The Alameda Corridor is a 20-mile freight rail expressway linking the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to the transcontinental rail yards near downtown Los Angeles. The ports are the two busiest in the nation, handling more than $200 billion in cargo annually and generating billions of dollars in related economic benefits and jobs. The volume of cargo containers moving through the ports is expected to double in the next 10 years, making it critical to improve the ground transportation system. ACTA is a joint powers authority governed by the cities and ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.