NBSO-Texas by Mariella Priem August 16, 2017
Backers of a Texas bullet train are moving to the next stop, selecting a team to build the Houston-to-Dallas line, despite not having a clear shot – yet – at construction.
Texas Central on Monday morning announced it reached agreement with Irving-based Fluor Enterprises and The Lane Construction Corporation, based in Connecticut, for further refinement and study of the proposed route. Once financing for the project, expected to cost at least $12 billion, is secured and federal approvals are obtained, the companies would then be the primary design-builders of the line.
Plans call for Japanese-style high-speed trains to make the 240 mile trip in 90 minutes, with a stop in the Brazos Valley near College Station. The station in Houston is expected to be on the site of the Northwest Mall at Loop 610 and U.S. 290, north of Uptown.
The companies, both with decades of experience in their respective engineering and construction fields, were partly chosen because of their ties to Texas projects, Texas Central CEO Carlos Aguilar said in a release. Both have worked on highway and mass transit projects in the state.
Lane Construction is a subsidiary of Italy’s Salini Impregilo, which has built rail systems throughout Italy, Denmark and the Middle East.
If built, the Texas line would be the nation’s first privately funded high-speed rail project. The company has said it will not use federal or state grants, though it might obtain federally supported loans open to private companies.
More:
http://www.nbso-texas.com/firms-chosen-for-houston-dallas-bullet-train