Barton-Aschman assisting United States, Mexico with border transportation program.

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 28, 1995--Barton-Aschman Associates Inc. (BA), a subsidiary of The Parsons Corp., was selected by the Arizona Department of Transportation and Secretaria de Communicaciones y Transportes to assist the United States and Mexico in developing a $2.5 million, binational border transportation planning program.

Teamed with La Empresa, a consortium of four Mexican firms, BA will provide federal and state policymakers from both countries with information needed to establish the U.S.-Mexico Border Transportation Planning and Programming Process. The consolidated effort responds to a Memorandum of Understanding between the United States and Mexico, which was signed by both nations' transportation secretaries in April 1994.

Information for the planning program will be derived from a study of 10 border states; four in the United States and six in Mexico. The team will then create:

-- a common U.S.-Mexico border transportation data bank of

facilities, trade and traffic flow information, and planning

activities from which needs and priorities for immediate

implementation will be agreed on;

-- definitions of short-, medium- and long-range priority national

and binational policy issues and actions needed to improve

operating and capital expenditures that affect U.S.-Mexico

Border Transportation Systems.

-- recommendations for future ongoing activities to fulfill

technical needs.

"The goal is to improve the efficiency of the existing binational policy-making, planning procedures and funding criteria affecting border land transportation systems (BLTS)," said Robert Scales, BA Project Manager. "We will establish a continuous, joint, binational, transportation planning and programming process."

BLTS include international bridges, border crossings and land connections to major urban and economic centers, principal seaports, airports, multimodal transfer stations and connections to national transportation facilities.

Barton-Aschman Associates is a subsidiary of The Parsons Corp., one of the world's largest, full-service engineering and construction organizations. Parsons is a recognized leader in the ground transportation, petroleum processing, chemical, power, environmental, water resources, aviation, and pulp & paper industries; as well as infrastructure, government, industrial and community development projects.

CONTACT: The Parsons Corp., Pasadena, Calif.

Noel Benson, 818/440-2539 (office)

818/545-6013 (pager)

or

Jamie Brown, 818/440-2463 (office)

818/545-6024 (pager)