FIRST BILLION $ CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT SIGNED

CALIFORNIA HSR TO START CONSTRUCTION!

Tutor Perini just signed the first major construction contract to begin the visionary Califronia High Speed Rail project.  The 800-mile, state-of-the-art high speed rail project has been years in the making methodically planning, engineering, permitting, and preparing for the start of construction.  That day is here!

Tutor Perini Corporation (NYSE:TPC), a leading civil and building construction company, announced that its joint venture has executed a contract with the California High-Speed Rail Authority for the design and construction of the initial Madera to Fresno segment of the California high-speed rail system. The contract is valued at approximately $985 million, plus an additional $53 million in provisional sums. Tutor Perini is the managing partner of the joint venture team, which includes Zachry Construction Corporation of San Antonio, Texas and Parsons Corporation of Pasadena, California.

Ronald Tutor, Chairman and CEO of Tutor Perini, said, "We are truly excited to be building the groundwork for America's first high-speed rail system and look forward to working with the Authority to deliver a high-quality project that will modernize California's transportation system and support economic growth."  More info 

 NEW UCLA STUDY:  CITIES SHOULD PROMOTE TOD

TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT @HSR

UCLA-UC Berkeley report: San Joaquin Valley should act now to benefit from high-speed rail. 

 

 

 HIGH SPEED RAIL CONNECTING CHICAGO & OHIO

PUBLIC MEETINGS BEGIN - HSR LINK

Imagining high speed passenger rail service between Columbus, Ohio and Chicago, the first public presentation will be made outlining the opportunities for the community and local economy. "Growing our businesses, taking that getaway trip or visiting family, high speed rail service does this efficiently by maximizing infrastructure investment."

Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer and Fred Lanahan, president of Northeast Indiana Passenger Rail Association, will present on the details of the project and the positive economic and environmental impact on Warsaw and the surrounding area on September 10.  More info  

 HSR - FOUNDATION OF CHINA'S GROWTH STRATEGY

HIGH SPEED RAIL IS CENTRAL TO GROWTH!

 
By making travel between large cities more economical, high-speed rail builds a foundation for service industries. Since high-speed rail dramatically cuts down travel times, many trips that used to be overnight now can be done in a day. While this may not be as important for tourists, this can be indispensable for business client meetings. 

 

Even if there are risks to building HSR, the rewards are far greater. To channel the words of the late US president John F. Kennedy, China must invest in high-speed rail not because it is easy, but because it is hard-and because it represents a critical next step in China's march toward development.  More info  

 AUSTRALIAN $23 BILLION HIGH SPEED RAIL

GOV'T REPORT: YES TO HSR SYDNEY-CANBERRA

An Australian government report recommends a Sydney-to-Canberra high speed rail link be up and running in 17 years, with a $23 billion price tag and a fare of $42 to $69 to compete with the airlines.

Deputy Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will release the High Speed Rail Advisory Group's findings on Monday.  $52 million has been allocated to begin detailed planning work, to finalise rail alignment and station locations in consultation with the Victorian, NSW and ACT governments and to develop a business case, in consultation with Infrastructure Australia.

The Infrastructure and Transport Minister said internationally, high speed rail construction costs were coming down and efficiencies were rising.  Companies from Japan, Spain, Italy and France were all interested in becoming involved in Australia's high speed rail, using their experience.  The report says opening up to a competitive global tender could bring costs down 20%.  More info  

 REPORT:  TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT TIPS

U OF MINNESOTA REPORT GIVES TOD TIPS

A team led by U of M researchers Yingling Fan and Andrew Guthrie found that providing a great work location is critical for employers in recruiting highly skilled young professionals who are likely to desire - or demand - urban living and access to transit.

Researchers also found that multifamily residential developers, redevelopment specialists and large corporate office tenants have a strong interest in transit-accessible sites, but regulatory barriers, cost issues, and uncertainty surrounding future development of transit often discourage both developers and businesses from selecting such sites.

Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Council chair Susan Haigh said shaping development around transit enhances both the development and transit and will spur jobs and economic development, improve access to destinations and opportunities, and strengthen neighborhoods.

"A 21st-century transit system provides the permanence and certainty that would encourage the private market to put capital into these centers of activity and community," said Haigh.  In addition, developers said efforts to make transit-accessible housing affordable by design rather than by subsidy are crucial to promoting mixed-income neighborhoods in station areas.

Key recommendations include:

*   Foster communication and collaboration between stakeholders
*   Promote vibrant, walkable neighborhoods focused around transit
*   Help affordable-housing specialists pursue cost-effective designs
*   Promote diverse transit options - and accelerate system development   More info

 RAIL MAKES PROPERTIES AND DEVELOPMENT SOAR

DEVELOPERS MAKE TRACKS TO STATIONS

Proximity to transit stations is spurring development and driving up property values along the Caltrain corridor from San Francisco to Silicon Valley. Rising Caltrain ridership sparked by the introduction of the Baby Bullet express service nine years ago already has boosted property values and construction activity. $1.5 billion in planned Caltrain improvements, particularly electrification of the current diesel-fuel system, are expected to elevate values even more.

With average weekday ridership at 47,060, plus planned upgrades, residential values near stations could increase by $1 billion or more, according to the Bay Area Council Economic Institute. They have determined that a one-minute reduction in expected travel time boosts housing values by 1.5 percent to 2.4 percent within a quarter mile of a station.

Robert McSweeney, managing director and senior vice president for the San Francisco Peninsula office of CBRE Group Inc., estimates that commercial property values could increase up to 25%. "If the trains are clean, efficient and quick, more people will utilize public transportation, and that will translate into higher land values," he said.  

Research indicates that commercial and residential values are already considerably higher near Caltrain stations compared to other locations. University of California, Berkeley, researchers Robert Cervero and Michael Duncan found in a 2002 study that being within a quarter-mile of a station was associated with a minimum 120% increase in the value of commercial land, or about $25 a square foot more than comparable properties.  More info 

 LEBANESE RAIL REVIVAL TO BE STUDIED

Tenders for a study into the feasibility of rebuilding the disused railway from Beirut north along the coast to Tripoli are to be invited by the European Investment Bank during September. The rail line, built by WW2 Allied forces, stopped operating in 1997.  EIB plans to commission a study of the technical, economic, financial, environmental, social and institutional aspects of rehabilitating and reopening the Beirut - Tripoli section, and will seek assistance with the development of tender documents.  More info