SMART's board OKs $24 million for Windsor extension

The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit's (SMART) board this week approved $24 million for four contracts to advance a 3.2-mile extension from Sonoma County Airport to Windsor, California.

The contracts include a $15.7 million agreement with Modern Railway Systems Inc. to design and construct the train control, communications system and platform communication elements for the project. The company has been a key contractor in the implementation of the system, SMART officials said in an emailed newsletter.

The board also authorized amending three professional services contracts with WRA Inc., Stantec Inc. and RailPros Inc. for work related to the Windsor extension. The updated agreements will allow the firms to start the design and environmental permitting processes, The Press Democrat reported.

"The board's approval helps keep our Windsor extension moving and on track," said SMART spokeswoman Jeanne Mariani-Belding in an email. "It's an important connection for us, as we continue to expand to the north to complete our 70-mile vision, which includes Windsor, Healdsburg and Cloverdale."

In April, California awarded $21 million to SMART for construction of the Windsor extension.

SMART's initial 43-mile route between Sonoma County Airport and downtown San Rafael, California, opened in August 2017.