Alameda Corridor Hits Milestone, Selects Finalist for Mid-Corridor Trench Work.

LONG BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 13, 1998--The Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority (ACTA) Thursday authorized negotiations with a joint-venture team led by Tutor-Saliba to design and construct a 10-mile-long railroad trench, the largest project of the Alameda Corridor program.

Based on the initial lowest ultimate cost, the ACTA Governing Board unanimously agreed to begin negotiations with Tutor-Saliba on a mid-corridor design-build contract. After negotiations on contract value and other details are complete, the Governing Board will consider approval of a contract in the fall based on lowest ultimate cost.

"This vote today marks a historic milestone for ACTA," said Councilman Rudy Svorinich Jr., ACTA board chairman. "This contract represents two-thirds of ACTA's construction program.

"Tutor-Saliba and the other proposers have vast experience in the design, construction and management of large public-works projects," said Svorinich. "We are eager to finalize a contract and begin construction of the mid-corridor trench."

Among other projects, Tutor-Saliba managed the recent renovation of the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum under a design-build contract. The project, completed in November, included a new club facility, press box, restrooms and concession areas.

Other members of the Tutor-Saliba team include O&G Industries, HNTB and Parsons Corp., which served as general design consultant for the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor in Orange County, Calif. HNTB supervised work on the Interstate 90 completion and reconstruction in Washington state.

The Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority is building a 20-mile railroad freight expressway linking the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles to the transcontinental rail yards just east of downtown Los Angeles. The project will speed the shipment of cargo by consolidating rail lines and improve the flow of rail and vehicle traffic by eliminating street-level railroad crossings.

In the mid-corridor segment from about State Route 91 in Compton to 25th Street in Los Angeles, trains will travel below ground level in an open trench three stories deep.

Proposals for the mid-corridor design-build contract were received July 1 from joint ventures led by Bechtel Infrastructure Corp., Tutor-Saliba Corp. and Kiewit Pacific Co.

ACTA went to great lengths to ensure the integrity of the review and selection process, Svorinich said. To guarantee confidentiality and impartiality, the identity of each proposing team was separated from the price of its proposal.

Independent panels were established to review the proposals in the key areas of pricing, management and technical data and legal and financial data, and make recommendations to a lead selection panel. That lead panel made Thursday's recommendation to the Governing Board.

If negotiations with the Tutor-Saliba team are not successful or if they result in a revised ultimate cost that exceeds that of another proposing team, negotiations with that team would be suspended. Talks then would begin with the proposer with the next-lowest ultimate cost, until negotiations are concluded.

The mid-corridor design-build contract is expected to be awarded this fall, with the actual digging of the trench expected to begin in June 1999.

The contract will require that the contractor implement a job development and training program that includes specific goals. For example, 30 percent of all new worker hours must go to residents of corridor communities. The contractor also must set up job-training sites and train at least 1,000 residents for construction-related trade jobs and other jobs.

A design-build contract differs from a traditional public-works contract. With a traditional contract, an engineering or architectural firm working under contract with a public agency would design a project, and the public agency would seek another contract for construction based on that design. With a design-build contract, one entity would design and construct the project under a single contract. This has the advantage of allowing several steps to proceed concurrently, rather than sequentially, saving time and money.

    CONTACT: Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority
              Veronica Soto, 310/847-4307
                    or
              Adler Public Affairs
              Phil Hampton, 562/435-5551