High-Speed Rail Authority Selects Teams to Design and Achieve Environmental Approval for Two Los Angeles-area Rail Lines.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- At its December meeting today, the High-Speed Rail Authority Board approved the selection of two environmental/engineering teams that will lead efforts to design and complete environmental analyses for two key Southern California high-speed train regional lines: Los Angeles to Orange County and Palmdale to Los Angeles.

"The selection of these two regional teams is a very important step for building this project and ensuring the environmental clearance and permitting is completed according to our timetables," said Judge Quentin L. Kopp, Chair of the California High-Speed Rail Authority. "Now we can begin the engineering work and right-of-way preservation, which will be critical tasks assigned these teams."

The two firms approved by the Board today are:

Los Angeles - Orange County:

STV 

STV is a leading multidisciplinary engineering, architectural, planning, environmental, and construction management firm with 1,400 personnel in 30 offices nationwide. STV has been ranked by Engineering News & Record (ENR) as 12th in the "Top 50 Transportation Engineering Companies," and fifth in Mass Transit/Rail.

The STV team is composed of firms known throughout the industry for successfully resolving complicated environmental issues and preparing appropriate documentation, achieving consensus among stakeholders through proactive outreach activities, and expertly engineering high-speed and other passenger rail systems.

Palmdale - Los Angeles:

Hatch Mott MacDonald, URS & Arup

This team is a joint venture between Hatch Mott MacDonald, LLC (HMM), URS and Arup, with HMM as the lead firm. The HMM/URS/Arup team offer a local, highly qualified professional staff with comprehensive environmental and engineering expertise, a thorough understanding of the Palmdale - LA project, a unique approach to the work, and a proven track record of successful performance on similar projects.

HMM and Arup are award winning tunnel designers, who are renowned for their innovative tunnel designs that reduce construction costs.

"The selection process for these teams was highly competitive, with a number of firms vying for the projects," said Mehdi Morshed, Executive Director of the California High-Speed Rail Authority. "The level of knowledge, experience and expertise was very impressive among the firms who submitted proposals. We know we have selected teams who are the best of the best in these regions and we are eager to immediately begin work."