Amtrak recently selected ADVANCE, a joint venture between AECOM and Jacobs, as the project delivery partner for the $6 billion Frederick Douglass Tunnel Program in Baltimore.
Plans call for a 2-mile double-tube rail tunnel to replace the 1.4-mile Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel south of Baltimore Penn Station. Amtrak leaders say the future tunnel, named after the Maryland abolitionist, is needed to improve passenger rail service through the 150-year-old tunnel, which requires trains to slow down and needs frequent maintenance.
The program also includes the replacement of five bridges, construction of a West Baltimore MARC station and other rail infrastructure improvements in the area.
The tunnel will serve both Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor and local Maryland Area Rail Commuter (MARC) trains.
Amtrak has already awarded two contracts for different phases of the project. Last September, he selected a joint venture of Clark Construction and Stacy and Witbeck as the construction manager at risk for work covering the tunnel’s southern approach and construction of the West Baltimore MARC station. Then, in February, Amtrak chose a joint venture of Kiewit and JF Shea Construction Inc. for the construction of the same tunnel.
Some demolition and other early work began last year, and major work is scheduled to begin later this year. Amtrak aims to have the full program completed by 2035.
Under the PDP, ADVANCE will provide design oversight, construction management, contract management and other administrative support. According to Amtrak, the joint venture will share risk and be incentivized for its services.
The PDP model was used for the construction of the 2012 Olympic Games facilities in London and has been used in other major projects overseas. Jacobs, then as CH2M, was part of the consortium working on the London project. In the United States, the $16 billion Hudson Tunnel project, which will add a rail link between New Jersey and New York, is moving forward using the PDP model.
The PDP team “can address challenges quickly and transparently without disrupting service on one of Amtrak’s busiest routes,” Chrissy Thom, senior vice president at Jacobs, said in a statement.
In addition to AECOM and Jacobs, the ADVANCE team includes Sener, Turner & Townsend, RailPros, Aldea and Dr. Sauer, to more than 22 disadvantaged and small businesses, according to Amtrak. The delivery partner has a DBE/SBE target of 14%.
