May 2009
New York, NY – A team including Halcrow, Inc. has won a contract from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Agency to advise Metro regarding selection and initial implementation of projects that could include some of the first privately financed rail transit lines in the US.
The team, led by InfraConsult LLC, Los Angeles, CA, will assess highway and transit projects in Metro’s long-range plan to determine which can be accelerated or delivered more cost-effectively by using various forms of public-private partnerships (PPPs). Projects under consideration include the more than 50 projects in the Metro’s long-range plan.
Halcrow will serve as a member of the integrated advisory team from the initial project screening through due diligence and detailed assessment of technical risks ranging from constructability to systems integration, cost and schedule. For the economic analysis, Halcrow brings critical strength in forecasting ridership. The three-year contract concludes with initial procurement work, and development of technical specifications, contract terms and work scope for projects that are selected to proceed.
“We have great respect for the pioneering nature of this work: for Metro, for California and the US public transit sector,” said Marcus Rooney, Halcrow project manager and senior member of the Halcrow public-private partnerships team in North America. “We are excited to bring Halcrow’s considerable PPP experience and talent to this important assignment.”
Halcrow is a key member of our team for this important program,” said Michael Schneider, managing partner of InfraConsult and overall project director. “We look forward to working closely with Halcrow’s international staff and highly knowledgeable consultants in a variety of fields germane to the Metro Public-Private Partnerships Advisory Contract.”
Since 1984, Halcrow has provided technical services on nearly 400 PPP assignments worldwide, and has served recently as technical adviser on major public-private rail transit projects in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Vietnam and the Philippines. In the US, the Metro contract builds on Halcrow’s experience as adviser for innovative delivery methods to the Texas and Virginia departments of transportation and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey.