Design-Build Team Picked for On-Again, Off-Again Boston Green Line Extension

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The long-awaited Green Line light rail extension in Boston, Massachusetts, received a boost recently when a joint venture led by Fluor Corporation (NYSE:FLR) (Irving, Texas) was picked to design and oversee the project. The roots of the extension go back to 1990, when state officials announced a long-term mass-transit plan for Boston that included extending the Green Line from Lechmere, in Cambridge, to West Medford, according to The Boston Globe. Since that time, however, the project has seen a number of setbacks and delays.

The 23-mile Green Line includes the oldest subway in the country, dating back to 1897. On November 20, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Fiscal and Management Control Board accepted a staff recommendation to pick Fluor-led GLX Constructors as the design-build firm for the extension project. GLX, which also includes Balfour Beatty Infrastructure Incorporated (Atlanta, Georgia), Herzog Contracting Group (St. Joseph, Missouri) and The Middlesex Corporation (Littleton, Massachusetts), had submitted a $1.08 billion bid.

The project is slated to begin construction in 2018 and open for service in late 2021, Fluor said in a press statement. The 4.3-mile extension will have seven new stations, including a relocated Lechmere Station, a vehicle storage and maintenance facility and two branches. The projected daily ridership at the seven stations is estimated to be 45,000 by 2030, Fluor said, adding the extension "will greatly improve local and regional mobility by offering a one-seat ride [no transfers necessary] to downtown Boston, address longstanding transportation concerns, result in fewer automobiles on local roads and help to combat greenhouse gas emissions and other components of air pollution."

For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the Green Line extension Phase III maintenance facility and storage yard, phases I, II and IIA, and Phase IV.

The extension has had its share of starts, stops and delays. Many of the postponements were tied to securing federal money for the extension, but in late 2015, the MBTA halted the project after it was learned that it would cost $1 billion more than previous estimates. A scaled-back version of the project received the go-ahead from state and federal authorities by spring 2017.

Another potential glitch surfaced in August, when the MBTA terminated its contract with CH2M Hill Companies (Englewood, Colorado) to oversee the project, due to a potential conflict of interest, according to The Boston Globe. However, MBTA officials said the termination would not impact the timing of the project, according to the newspaper. For related information, see September 20, 2017, article - U.S. Northeast, New England Look to $11.5 Billion in Fourth-Quarter Kickoffs as Hurricanes Keep their Distance.

Industrial Info is tracking nearly $3.3 billion in MBTA projects.

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