MTA approves final major contract for East Side Access Manhattan Caverns

5 February 2016


USA - The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Board approved the final major contract for the East Side Access project, which will build and finish four platforms and eight tracks for the new Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) terminal some 100ft below Grand Central Terminal, it announced on January 27.

The Manhattan contract will transform two 1,143ft-long caverns carved out of solid rock into a terminal station, with more than 12 miles of track work from Queens to Manhattan, including eight tracks and four platforms in the station; elevators, escalators and
staircases to carry customers to and from the underground station; and all architectural finishes through the caverns.

"With the award of these contracts, the eventual completion of East Side Access is starting to come into view," said Michael Horodniceanu, President of MTA Capital Construction, which is building the project. "This is the next chapter in the long history of Grand Central Terminal and the growth and development of New York City."

The MTA selected the Tutor Perini Corporation for the three-and-a-half-year caverns project at a contract value of USD 663M. During the year-long procurement process, 34 firms requested the RFP documents and seven submitted separate technical and cost proposals. The selection committee unanimously selected low cost proposer Tutor Perini from among three firms that submitted best and final offers.

The contract to make upgrades to railroad infrastructure in Sunnyside, Queens, was also awarded to Tutor Perini Corp., in December, and is valued at up to USD 79M. The upgrades will enable LIRR trains to access Grand Central Terminal.

The work the contractors will perform in Sunnyside includes excavation and construction of an approach structure that will allow the LIRR's existing tracks to connect to one of the four rail tunnels that have been built below Sunnyside Yard. This will complete the physical connection that will run from the tunnels under Grand Central all the way to daylight in Sunnyside, Queens. Approaches to the other tunnels will be built separately through other contracts.

Workers will also replace of one of the five bridges that carry tracks over 48th Street. Additional work that will be performed under this contract includes switch installation; retaining wall construction; installation of electrical utilities; demolition of an electrical substation; and installation of overhead wire support structures.

The contract is structured to take 19 months and is valued at USD 53.3M. If the MTA deems that the work is going well, the contract allows the authority to exercise options valued at approximately USD 26.5M that would expand the scope of work to be undertaken and extend the duration of the contract to a total of 30 months. Construction activities for this contract are planned to be underway in late February.

The East Side Access project will increase the LIRR's capacity into Manhattan, and dramatically shorten travel time for Long Island and eastern Queens commuters traveling to the east side of Manhattan. East Side Access is scheduled to be completed in December 2022.