The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) has awarded a $1.23bn contract to a joint venture team Hochtief subsidiary Flatiron and Dragados USA to build a 60-mile (97km) stretch of the planned 520-mile high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and San Francisco, US.
The design-build project for the segment is called as California High Speed Rail Package 2-3. The project runs through California’s Central Valley, the counties of Fresno, Tulare and Kings, and the cities of Hanford, Corcoran and Allensworth.
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Work under the project will include construction of at-grade and aerial sections of high-speed train infrastructure, grade separation structures, relocation of 5.5 miles (8.8km) of existing track and waterway crossings.
The work will also include roadway reconstructions, utility relocations and other related improvements.
Hochtief executive board chairman Marcelino Fernández Verdes said: "This is an example of significant investment in new and upgraded transport infrastructure in the US and a major step ahead for Hochtief Group."
Design work under the project is expected to take 18 months, with construction scheduled to be initiated in late 2016 and will continue for four years.
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By GlobalDataFollowing completion, the project will be the first high-speed rail system in the US.
The route will provide environmental benefits, relieve roadway congestion, spur economic development and bring new jobs to the Central Valley.
By 2029, the California high-speed rail system will run from San Francisco to the Los Angeles basin within 3h at speeds in excess of 200mph.
Finally, the system will extend to Sacramento and San Diego, totalling 800 miles with up to 24 stations.
Earlier this month, the CHSRA awarded a $700m contract to a consortium led by the engineering consultancy Parsons Brinkerhoff for the high-speed rail programme.
The consortium is comprised Network Rail’s international consulting arm Network Rail Consulting and management consultants LeighFisher.
Under the deal, the consortium will provide programme delivery and management services on the first phase of California’s $68bn high-speed railway project.
