Two Teams Shortlisted for First Phase of $4.3B Calgary Light-Rail Project

A rendering of the Eau Claire station envisioned for the Calgary Green Line light rail system. Image: Courtesy of Calgary Green Line LRT

The short list has narrowed to two teams for phase one of Calgary's Green Line light rail system, an estimated $4.28-billion line that is the largest public works project in city history.

Several big engineering and construction companies are in the chase, including Barnard Construction, Flatiron and WSP on one team, and Aecon, Dragados and Acciona on the other.

Approved by the city council in 2017 and meant to be funded and built in phases, the project, if completed, will include 28.5 miles of new track and 28 new stations. The initial phase is for the 11.5-mile core of the system.

But the project's total final cost clearly remains to be determined.

After Green Line LRT releases a request for proposals later this year and makes a final selection next year, a year-long collaboration and design development phase begins. It will provide a "better understanding of risks and costs in an open and transparent manner," Green Line LRT said in a statement.

Each team had responded to a request for qualification.

The shortlisted teams are:

Bow Transit Connectors
Barnard Constructors of Canada, LP, Flatiron Constructors Canada Ltd and WSP Canada Inc.

City Link Partners
Aecon Infrastructure Management Inc., Dragados Canada Inc., Acciona Infrastructure Canada Inc., Parsons Inc. and AECOM Canada Ltd.

Deputy Editor Richard Korman helps run ENR's business and legal news and investigations, selects ENR's commentary and oversees editorial content on ENR.com. In 2023 the American Society of Business Publication Editors awarded Richard the Stephen Barr Award, the highest honor for a single feature story or investigation, for his story on the aftermath of a terrible auto crash in Kentucky in 2019, and in 2015 the American Business Media awarded him the Timothy White Award for investigations of surety fraud and workplace bullying. A member of Investigative Reporters and Editors, Richard has been a fellow on drone safety with the McGraw Center for Business Journalism at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY. Richard's freelance writing has appeared in the Seattle Times, the New York Times, Business Week and the websites of The Atlantic and Salon.com. He admires construction projects that finish on time and budget, compensate all team members fairly and record zero fatalities or serious injuries.

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