State Hits Obstacle In Commuter Rail Project

[JeffreyS]

State Hits Obstacle In Commuter Rail Project

By LINDSAY PETERSON | The Tampa Tribune
The Florida Department of Transportation has hit another obstacle in its attempts to get started on the Central Florida commuter rail project.
Three contractors submitted bids last week to build the first leg of the 61-mile system, and they all came in over the $158 million maximum price. The total cost of the project is about $1 billion, which includes the cost of purchasing tracks from CSX Transportation.
The contract is for the design and construction of several miles of new tracks, upgrading tracks, signal systems and stations.
DOT spokesman Dick Kane downplayed the situation. He couldn't say whether the agency would have to increase the contract or cut back on the work to attract a qualified bid.
"We don't know what the next step is," he said.
The three bidders were Archer Western/Railworks, Kiewit/Herzog and Lane Construction/Balfour Beatty. The documents didn't show what their bids were, only that they were all over the maximum bid price.
The commuter project hit its first major problem last year when the state Legislature failed to approve a controversial liability agreement in its deal to buy 61 miles of CSX Transportation tracks for the system.
The state plans to spend at least $432 million to buy the tracks from CSX. The company would continue to use the tracks to carry freight during off-peak commuter hours, but it wants to be free of any liability if it caused an accident involving a commuter train on the line.
Without the agreement, the track sale can't be completed. The DOT has moved forward to get the commuter system started, saying it expects the liability provision to be approved this year. But the primary opponent of the liability provision, state Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, said she plans to continue her fight this session.
The DOT faced another setback when it made plans to buy railcars for the commuter system from a Colorado-based company. It helped sell the system on the basis of these cars, which use less fuel than the traditional locomotives. But it had to rebid the contract when the company, Colorado Railcar, liquidated in December.
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/feb/04/state-hits-obstacle-commuter-rail-project/