Colton, CA - On 2/28/15, U.S. Congressman and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Jeff Denham (R-CA-10) joined representatives from HDR, Inc. and the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) for a tour of the Colton Crossing Rail-to-Rail Grade Separation project. The NRC organized the event.
Upon his arrival, Congressman Denham was greeted by representatives from HDR, including Senior Vice President, Global Director of Freight Railroads and NRC Board Member Scott Goehri, Senior Vice President, Transportation Group Area Manager Tom Kim, Federal Government Relations Coordinator Patrick Malone, and Vice President of Client Development Lisa Reece.
Additional attendees included NRC VP of Grassroots Advocacy & Events Ashley Bosch, San Bernardino Associated Governments (SANBAG) Board President Dennis Michaels, SANBAG Director of Project Delivery Garry Cohoe, SANBAG Chief of Legislative and Public Affairs Tim Watkins, City of Colton Mayor Richard Delarosa, City of Colton Mayor Pro Tem Frank Navarro, Former City of Colton Mayor Kelly Chastain and California State Assembly member Cheryl Brown.
The Colton Crossing is located where Union Pacific Railroad's (UPRR's) east/west tracks meet BNSF Railway's (BNSF) north/south tracks in Colton, California. To better serve freight and passenger movement in the region, a flyover structure was constructed to elevate the UPRR mainline tracks approximately 35 feet above the BNSF tracks. The lines serve as a main vein to/from the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles and are used by Amtrak and Metrolink for passenger rail services.
The Congressman had the opportunity to see the flyover structure first-hand and gain insight on the stakeholders' collaborative efforts that helped deliver the project $100 million under budget and 8 months ahead of schedule. The project, as part of a public-private partnership, successfully met the tight schedule to qualify for US Department of Transportation's Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) Grant funding. Other funding sources included state bonds, the railroads, and Caltrans funding for environmental studies.
"The success of the Colton Crossing Flyover Project is a result of the superb collaboration among all stakeholders and the project team" said Goehri. "Everyone, locally and nationally, will receive tremendous benefits as a result of this success."
"Colton Crossing's success has made transportation, travel, and goods movement easier on everyone in the region" said Denham. "The project is a great example of using innovative construction methods to deliver projects of national significance ahead of schedule and below predicted costs, and I was pleased to see it firsthand."
The event also received coverage in:
Progressive Railroading Magazine; RT&S Magazine; and
HDR, Inc.