Plans for the $12.7 billion BART Silicon Valley Phase II extension are coming together as the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority in California announced its selection Aug. 2 for a commitment of a $5.1 billion grant from the Federal Transit Administration for the project.
The New Starts capital investment grant is the second-largest grant the federal government has ever offered for a transportation project, following a $6.9 billion grant for the Hudson Tunnel project between New York and New Jersey, said Cindy Chavez, chairwoman of the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) board and a Santa Clara County supervisor, during a news conference.
“This indicates the federal government’s confidence in this important project,” he said.
However, VTA still needs to fill a $700 million funding gap, Chavez said. VTA is freezing new spending for 60 days and looking to renegotiate some existing contracts to help close the gap. The agency will need to find the money for the local share before it can finalize a full funding grant agreement with the Federal Transit Administration.
Records show the project has local funding from voter-approved sales tax revenue in addition to state funding from the Rail and Interurban Transit Capital Program and bridge surplus revenue sharing.
“It was critical for us to get the commitment from the federal government, because now we know what we need to solve,” said Tom Maguire, VTA’s director of megaprojects.
The extension would add 6 miles and four stations in San Jose and Santa Clara, California, to the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system, to close its loop around the San Francisco Bay Area. About 5.5 miles of the extension would be a single-bore tunnel and three of the stations would be underground. The plans also call for a train maintenance site and other facilities.
TVA commissioned a 54-foot diameter TBM from Herrenknecht last year to bore the tunnel. Delivery of the TBM is expected next year and the tunnel is expected to take between three and four years.
Last month, TVA officials announced that it had selected Bechtel Infrastructure Corp. for a $490.8 million construction management services contract. The agency also pre-selected the Kiewit Shea Traylor joint venture, with Kiewit Infrastructure West, JF Shea Construction and Traylor Brothers, supported by Kiewit Engineering Group and Arup, for the tunnel and track work package.
Other contract packages planned for the project include construction of the maintenance yard, construction of the three underground stations, and construction of an above-ground station and parking structure.
The Phase 1 extension project added 10 miles to the line. This phase of work was completed in 2020. The first work on Phase 2 began this spring. VTA aims to begin passenger service on the extension in 2037.
