Metro Gold Line light-rail extension marks milestone

The Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority has surpassed the 50 percent completion mark for the 11.5-mile Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension from Pasadena to Azusa, Calif., the authority announced yesterday.

When completed, the nearly $1 billion Measure R project will include six new light-rail stations with intermodal parking facilities in the cities of Arcadia, Monrovia, Duarte, Irwindale and Azusa; two dozen new and rebuilt bridge structures; 14 grade crossings; 3.6-miles of relocated freight track within a shared corridor with BNSF Railway Co.; and a 24-acre, $265 million Operations Campus that will house up to 84 light-rail vehicles.

"We still have a significant way to go to substantial completion, but the progress already made provides the confidence that we will be able to meet our schedule and deliver this regionally significant project on time and on budget," said Habib Balian, the construction authority's chief executive officer, in a press release.

All three design-build projects have been awarded for the project: the $18.6 million Gold Line Bridge to Skanska USA; the $486 million Pasadena-to-Azusa alignment to Foothill Transit Constructors, a Kiewit-Parsons Joint Venture; and the $48.7 million intermodal parking and enhancements to Webcor.

The Gold Line Bridge was completed on time and on budget in late 2012.