Meeting_Body
CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE
JUNE 21, 2018
Subject
SUBJECT: METRO BLUE LINE TRACK AND SYSTEM
REFURBISHMENT
Action
ACTION: APPROVE RECOMMENDATIONS
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
CONSIDER:
A. REPROGRAMMING $11,500,000 in funds previously reserved for Metro Blue Line Washington Siding Project from Mid-City Exposition Blvd LRT (CP 800113) to Metro Blue Line Track and System Refurbishment Project (CP 205115);
B. INCREASING the Life of Project Budget (LOP) Budget for Metro Blue Line Track and System Refurbishment Project (CP 205115) by $11,500,000 from $90,779,817 to $102,279,817; and
C. AMEND the Fiscal Year 2019 (FY19) Budget for Metro Blue Line Track and System Refurbishment Project (CP 205115) to increase it by $5,000,000 from $44,581,402 to $49,581,402.
Issue
ISSUE
In March 2018, the Metro Board of Directors approved the Life of Project (LOP) budget for the Metro Blue Line Track and Refurbishment project. This project, combined with the Metro Blue Line Resignaling and Willowbrook/Rosa Parks projects, are collectively known as the New Blue, an approximately $330 million construction project targeted towards bringing the 27 year old Metro Blue Line into a state of good repair (SGR). The vast majority of the project begins in January 2019, when the Metro Blue Line undergoes a series of closures to accommodate the state of good repair improvements as well as the Willowbrook/Rosa Parks station improvement project. The New Blue effort is scheduled to be completed in August 2019.
During the March 2018 Board meeting, the Board requested a report back on customer-facing visual and aesthetic improvements that could also be conducted as part of the New Blue project. In addition, over the last several months staff has held numerous briefings and meetings regarding the New Blue program, and at nearly all of them, stakeholders have requested that in addition to the proposed SGR projects, staff should also include visual and aesthetic improvements directed towards the customer experience. This proposed action responds to those requests, and will give the project team sufficient budget to not only complete the required SGR projects, but also to include aesthetic/visual improvements to the Metro Blue line such as re-painting of all stations, visual upgrades including landscaping, passenger information, signage and wayfinding.
BACKGROUND
The scope of work for the Metro Blue Line Track and Refurbishment portion of the New Blue largely entails state of good repair work typical of an operating railroad at its age, and includes work such as installation of new track and ductbanks, replacement of the entire overhead contact system (OCS), improvement of the Expo/Blue Line junction, and upgrading of two double crossovers at the 7th/Metro station. The LOP for this work does not include aesthetic/visual improvements, as such, additional funding is required.
Metro Blue Line Washington Siding Project
The Washington Siding project was budgeted at $12 million originally as part of the Expo Phase I project with the understanding that Metro would serve as the Lead Agency. The purpose of the project was to provide mid-day storage and light maintenance of light rail vehicles (LRVs) prior to the completion of a permanent facility. As a result, upon completion of Expo Phase 1, the Expo Authority transferred the budget for the Washington Siding project to the Expo Phase 2 budget. However, to date, limited funds have been expended on the Washington Siding project, yet $11.5 million budget remains.
Discussion
DISCUSSION
Now that the 46-car Division 14 facility in Santa Monica is operational, Metro Operations has determined that the Washington Siding location for mid-day storage of LRV’s is no longer practical. In addition, the proposed location of the Washington Siding project is now being considered as part of several study alignments for the West Santa Ana Branch project. Further, mid-day storage functions similar to what was proposed for Washington Siding can be accommodated upon completion of the 95th Street Siding which is part of the New Blue (Blue Line Resignaling Project). As such, moving forward with the Washington Siding project is no longer practical.
The Blue Line Track and Refurbishment improvement of the Expo/Blue Line junction, and upgrading of two double crossovers at the 7th/Metro station (estimated at more than $12 million) benefit the Expo Line as well as the Blue Line. As a result, staff is recommending reprogramming of $11.5 million for Washington Siding to the Blue Line Track & Refurbishment Project. This will provide a domino effect: The reprogramming of funds to those infrastructure improvements for the New Blue Project will 1) increase the LOP, 2) unencumber existing LOP funds, and 3) allow reallocation of those funds (previously identified for the junction and crossovers) for aesthetic/visual improvements.
Aesthetic/Visual Improvements
At the request of the Board, staff has identified additional scope of work targeted towards the customer experience and visual improvements to the 27 year-old Metro Blue Line. A list of proposed visual improvements is as follows:
• Repainting of all stations, light poles, and OCS poles
• All new signage, wayfinding equipment, and station identification infrastructure
• Re-landscaping of all station areas and park and ride lots
• Enhanced passenger information (digital map cases)
Determination_Of_Safety_Impact
DETERMINATION OF SAFETY IMPACT
This Board action will not have an impact on established safety standards.
Financial_Impact
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Per previous Board action, all savings from the EXPO project will be redirected to the Westside Purple Line Section 2 project at such time as the EXPO project is closed out. Currently, the EXPO is project is not closed out, therefore, for the reasons detailed above, staff recommends reprogramming funds previously identified for the Washington Siding project to the Metro Blue Line Track and System Refurbishment project.
On April 2018, the Expo Construction Authority (JPA) confirmed an exchange of $16.6 million in order to turn back the EXPO project over to Metro. $11.5 million of those funds are related to the Washington Siding. The JPA continues to review the remaining funds available affecting the Expo II project for future transfer to Metro. Staff proposes to use $11.5 million of the eligible funding sources from the $16.6M identified to date to support the increase proposed under this action.
This action will increase the Metro Blue Line Track and System Refurbishment LOP Budget (CP 205115) from $90,779,817 to $102,279,817, an $11,500,000 increase. The FY19 budget will be amended by $5,000,000 to include a portion of the effort scheduled for completion in FY19. Since this is a multi-year project, the Project Manager, Cost Center Manager, and Chief Program Management Officer will be responsible for budgeting the cost in future fiscal years
The expenditure plan for this work is included as Attachment A.
Impact to Budget
If recommendations A and B are approved, the $11,500,000 LOP increase will be funded using Expo Phase I funds (CP 800113) previously allocated for the Washington Siding project. There is no impact to the FY18 budget. With the majority of the work scheduled to be done after January 2019, during the 8-month shutdown of the Blue Line, it is expected that one-half of the expenditures will be incurred in the second half of FY19, and the remaining balance in FY20. The sources of funds from the Expo I transfer require a review and reconciliation to confirm and allocate correct eligible funding sources per the recommendation. These sources may include Prop C25%, Prop A 35% and other local funding sources eligible to support the State of Good Repair efforts.
Alternatives_Considered
ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED
The Board may choose to not authorize this increase to the LOP Budget. This alternative is not recommended because rejection of the LOP budget increase will prevent staff from completing the proposed Metro Blue Line customer experience enhancements as part of the New Blue project.
Next_Steps
NEXT STEPS
Upon approval of this action, staff will advance these visual improvements as part of the New Blue via execution of contract options (signage and OCS pole painting), contract task orders (landscaping), re-prioritization of existing contracts (digital map cases), and utilization of in-house labor (station painting). The work will start when the New Blue closures begin in January 2019, and will be completed when the New Blue re-opens for revenue service in August 2019.
Attachments
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A - Project 205115 Funding and Expenditure Plan
Prepared_by
Prepared by: James Wei, Deputy Executive Officer, Project Management, (213) 922-7528
Tim Lindholm, Executive Officer, Capital Projects, (213) 922-7297
Reviewed_By
Reviewed by: Richard Clarke, Chief Program Management Officer, (213) 922-7557
