Tunnel construction contract awarded for the Eglinton Crosstown Project - Yonge Street to Brentcliffe Road
TORONTO, Nov. 12, 2013 /CNW/ - The Metrolinx Board of Directors has approved the award of the Eglinton Crosstown East Tunnel construction contract from Yonge Street to just east of Brentcliffe Road, signalling another important milestone in the largest rapid transit expansion in the City of Toronto's history.
"Approval to award this contract means Metrolinx and the Province of Ontario can keep moving forward to deliver public transit that will transform the way residents travel across the region," said Metrolinx President and CEO, Bruce McCuaig. "The Crosstown project is a priority for Metrolinx and regional transit, making it easier for people to choose transit."
This $177 Million contract is the second of the two tunneling contract packages for the Crosstown Project.
Aecon Dragados Joint Venture will begin work in late 2013 to construct approximately 3.25 km of twin tunnels using two tunnel boring machines and precast concrete tunnel lining segments supplied by Metrolinx. The twin tunnels are to be constructed as a single pair of drives from a launch shaft located east of Brentcliffe Road to an extraction shaft located east of Yonge Street.
"We are moving forward on the biggest investment in public transit in the City of Toronto," said Ontario Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, Glen Murray. "The Eglinton Crosstown Project will create tens of thousands of jobs and make it easier for commuters to get work, school or home to their families."
Tunnelling from the west launch shaft area near Black Creek Drive to Yonge-Eglinton station began in June 2013, under a contract awarded by the Metrolinx Board last year.
For more detailed information on the tunnelling process for the Crosstown, go to www.thecrosstown.ca/tunnelling.
The Eglinton Crosstown Project is a key project identified in The Big Move, the regional transportation plan for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA). Currently, Metrolinx has $16 billion worth of projects underway that make up an extensive network of regional rapid transit projects.
Metrolinx is the Province of Ontario's regional transportation agency for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA). For more information, go to www.metrolinx.com.
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BACKGROUNDER
Eglinton Crosstown
The Eglinton Crosstown is a light rail transit line that will run along Eglinton Avenue between Mount Dennis (Weston Road) and Kennedy station. This 19-kilometre corridor will include a 10-kilometre underground portion, between Keele Street and Laird Drive.
The Crosstown will have up to 25 stations and stops. It will link to 54 bus routes, three subway stations and various GO Transit lines.
The Crosstown will provide fast, reliable and convenient transit by carrying passengers in dedicated right-of-way transit lanes separate from regular traffic.
This service will have priority signalling at intersections to ensure certainty in travel times. The vehicles will use the PRESTO proof-of-payment system and will have multiple entrances and low floors to ensure fast and accessible boarding.
Light rail vehicles can travel as fast as 80km/hr. However, actual speed is determined by the spacing of the stops and the speed limits of surrounding traffic. On average, the Crosstown vehicles will travel at 28km/hr.
The projected ridership of the Crosstown is 5,400 passengers per hour in the peak direction by 2031. The capacity of the Crosstown vehicles is 15,000 passengers per hour per direction. Cars can be removed or added easily, thus providing the flexibility to accommodate ridership demands.
Light rail transit is a proven technology that is used around the world, including extremely cold places such as Edmonton, Calgary and Minneapolis.
The Crosstown is a $4.9 billion (2010$) investment from the Government of Ontario to expand transit in Toronto. It is the largest transit expansion in the history of Toronto.
The Eglinton Crosstown East Twin Tunnels Contract
The Eglinton Crosstown East Twin Tunnels contract (Yonge Street to Brentcliffe Road) will construct approximately 3.25 km of twin tunnels using two tunnel boring machines and precast concrete tunnel lining segments supplied by Metrolinx. The twin tunnels are to be constructed as a single pair of drives from a launch shaft located east of Brentcliffe Road to an extraction shaft located east of Yonge Street.
In addition to the twin tunnels the contract also includes the construction of the launch and extraction shafts, headwalls associated with future stations, two (2) emergency exit buildings, three (3) cross passages, required utility relocations, traffic staging, ground and building settlement monitoring and site restoration.
The Tendering Process
A Request for Pre-Qualifications was publicly advertised on the MERX website on January 14, 2013 to pre-qualify tunnel contractors and jet grout subcontractors. Submissions were received on February 14, 2013. Eight (8) Respondents requested copies of the Pre Qualification package and eight (8) Respondents/Joint Venture entities provided submissions. All submissions received were reviewed and evaluated by the evaluation team in the presence of a Fairness Monitor.
Pre-Qualification submissions which met mandatory requirements and received a minimum score of 70 points for the qualitative evaluation were invited to bid on the subsequent tender process. Eight (8) Respondents Joint/Venture construction contractors and eight (8) jet grout subcontractors met the specified requirements and were approved to proceed to the tender stage. Specifications and drawings were prepared for the Eglinton Crosstown East Tunnels construction contract from Yonge Street to Brentcliffe Road and the bid package was issued on July 9, 2013 to all pre-qualified Respondents/Joint Venture entities. All pre-qualified respondents were provided with copies of the tender documents.
Before the tender close, two (2) of the pre-qualified -contractors, joined to form a new Joint Venture. This proposal and the new entity was acceptable to Metrolinx, which allowed them to submit their bid as a single Joint Venture. Based on this, the total number of pre-qualified bidders for this project was reduced to seven (7) contractors.
Tender Results
Metrolinx received a total of three (3) bid submissions on September 12, 2013 out of seven (7) prequalified bidders. Tender prices ranged from a low of $176,663,700 to a high of $224,699,345 exclusive of HST. The remaining four (4) prequalified bidders who did not participate in the bid indicated that the major reasons include: insufficient tendering period for the project, high number or pre-qualified contractors, required utility work, backlog of work and other potential projects.
Metrolinx project staff recommend award to Aecon Dragados Joint Venture as the lowest tendered price compliant contractor.
SOURCE: Metrolinx
Media contact:
Anne Marie Aikins
Media Relations
416-202-5796
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