The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) in the US has approved the final major contract for the East Side Access Manhattan Caverns project.
Work under the project will include the construction of four platforms and eight tracks for the new Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) terminal approximately 100ft below Grand Central Terminal.
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In order to carry out this project, Tutor Perini has been awarded a second major contract worth $663m, after winning a $79m infrastructure upgrade contract last December.
The upgrade works will take place in Sunnyside, Queens, which will enable LIRR trains to access Grand Central Terminal.
MTA chairman and CEO Thomas Prendergast said: "These are significant milestones for East Side Access and will turn raw underground caverns into the modern station that LIRR customers will use when they head directly to and from the East Side of Manhattan.
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"And the Sunnyside contract will make it possible for trains to reach Grand Central Terminal. East Side Access will save Long Island and Queens customers up to 40 minutes a day in travel time, demonstrating why transit expansion is a key element of our 2015-2019 Capital Programme."
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By GlobalDataThe 3.5-year cavern project will transform two 1,143ft-long caverns into a terminal station with more than 12 miles of track work from Queens to Manhattan, including eight tracks and four platforms in the station.
Work will also include installation of elevators, escalators and staircases to carry customers to and from the underground station, as well as all architectural finishes through the caverns.
MTA Capital Construction president Dr Michael Horodniceanu said: "With the award of these contracts, the eventual completion of East Side Access is starting to come into view.
"This is the next chapter in the long history of Grand Central Terminal and the growth and development of New York City."
During the year-long procurement process, 34 firms requested the request for proposal (RFP) documents and seven submitted separate technical and cost proposals.
The contract was approved by the Long Island and Finance Committees of the MTA Board and by the complete MTA Board.
The East Side Access project will increase the LIRR’s capacity into Manhattan, and reduce travel time for Long Island and eastern Queens commuters travelling to the east side of Manhattan.
The completion of the East Side Access project will also clear LIRR tracks in Penn Station, allowing trains from the MTA Metro-North Railroad’s New Haven Line access to Penn Station through Queens.
The Penn Station Access project will build four new stations in the East Bronx, significantly cutting travel times to and from Manhattan.
The East Side Access is scheduled to be completed in December 2022.
Image: The contract will transform two 1,143ft-long caverns carved out of solid rock into a terminal station. Photo: courtesy of New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
