Press Release

HIGH-SPEED RAIL SEEKS TO QUALIFY PROSPECTIVE DESIGN-BUILD CONTRACTORS
Formal procurement process begins to bring thousands of new construction jobs to the Central Valley 

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The California High-Speed Rail Authority today announced a major step forward that paves the way for thousands of new construction jobs in the Central Valley, an area with one of the highest unemployment rates in California and the nation. As part of the construction procurement of more than a billion dollars, the Authority issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) from prospective design-build firms interested in building the largest construction package for the Central Valley. 

“As promised, high-speed rail will bring immediate positive benefits for our economy by creating tens of thousands of jobs at a time and in a place where we need them most,” said Roelof van Ark, CEO of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, the state agency charged with overseeing the project. “And we know, quantifiably, that this project is less costly than the alternatives needed to increase California’s transportation capacity for our growing population, has a smaller environmental footprint than freeway or airport expansion, and is more efficient and environmentally sound.” 

Initial construction in the Central Valley will begin next fall, upon completion of the environmental process. With an estimated value of $1.5 billion - $2 billion, this large design-build construction contract will be placed before the end of 2012. Smaller construction packages, focused in and around the City of Fresno, will be released for bid in the coming months and awarded in mid-2012. 

This segment begins north of the San Joaquin River near the City of Madera and continues south to approximately East American Avenue through the City of Fresno.  This particular sub-segment, for which qualified bidders are being sought, will extend from 21 to 29 miles in length depending on the final alignment selected through the environmental process, and will include 12 grade separations, 2 viaducts, 1 tunnel and a major river crossing over the San Joaquin River. 

The 35-day request (correction to number of days, updated at 4:49pm) for qualifications (RFQ) process will establish a shortlist of the most highly qualified firms to provide design-build services for the project. These shortlisted firms will then be eligible to submit proposals in response to a request for proposals (RFP) that the Authority anticipates releasing in spring 2012. At the end of this procurement process, the selected design-build firm will be responsible for all work required to design and construct the first portion of the initial construction segment in the Central Valley. 

As part of the project’s economic benefits for the region and state, the procurement is expected to attract a number of major national and international construction and design firms. It is likely firms will form teams to deliver work on this scale that will include a large number of sub-consultants.  

“The small and disadvantaged business participation goal of 30 percent of contract value is intended to encourage the large businesses leading these teams to commit to hiring small and disadvantaged businesses,” said van Ark. “Part of the assessments will be based on the Design-Builder’s commitment to meet the requirement to utilize small, disadvantaged, micro, disabled veteran, minority and women-owned businesses at all tiers.” 

The RFQ is posted online available from the Authority’s website, www.cahighspeedrail.ca.gov/construction.aspx. 

Design-Build  

The principal reason in choosing the design-build contracting method is to complete the initial phase of the project within the ARRA funding time constraints. Design-build is a contract delivery mechanism where the contractor is able to bring innovative means and methods to both the design and construction of the project.  The contractor‘s ability to control the timing of design and construction work when using the design-build approach can lead to significant time savings.   

Design-build contracts also have the capacity to transfer risk to the party best positioned to manage the risk. For example, the schedule risk associated with the interface between design and construction is best managed by the design-builder. The Authority aims to meet the funding deadlines by giving the design-builder the flexibility to determine the most efficient means and methods to complete the scope. 

California’s High-Speed Train Project    

The California High-Speed Rail Authority is developing a San Francisco Bay Area to Los Angeles and Anaheim high-speed rail system that will operate at speeds of up to 220 miles per hour. The full system will connect all of the state’s major urban centers, including Sacramento and San Diego. Initial infrastructure construction will begin in the Central Valley, the backbone of the system, in 2012. The project is being funded through voter-approved state bonds, federal funding grants, local funding, and public-private partnerships.