Plans for an envisioned 23-mile rail transit extension to northern Virginia’s Dulles International Airport have taken a step forward, with the Federal Transit Administration’s Dec. 3 approval of a $900-million, multiyear commitment for the project’s $2.6-billion first phase. The deal isn’t done yet, however. The proposed funding commitment needs approval by U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters as well as the Office of Management and Budget and would be subject to a 60-day congressional review. In addition, it would be up to congressional appropriations committees to provide annual installments of the $900 million. Click to enlarge image Federal Share for First

The Federal Highway Administration has reached agreement with former Central Artery/Tunnel project management consultant Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff over a fatal Interstate 90 tunnel plenum collapse that culminated in January with a $407.1-million settlement with the U.S. Attorney and the Massachusetts Attorney General. As part of the deal, the two firms will not be debarred from federal work but must implement further quality-assurance measures on future large federally funded projects. Photo: NTSB Falling Interstate 90 tunnel plenum panels killed local woman, sparking investigations. Related Links: FHWA Agreement Bechtel Infrastructure Corp, Frederick, Md., paid out $357.1 million in the settlement and Parsons Brinckerhoff

An economic stimulus package is coming, and President-elect Barack Obama has made it clear that infrastructure will be part of it. Obama is not saying how large the plan or its public-works share will be but anxious state and industry officials are assembling lists of projects they would like the stimulus to fund, hoping the password to get those projects included is “ready to go.” Photo: Guy Lawrence / ENR President-elect’s program includes roads, schools, energy upgrades. Related Links: Utah, Florida Lead List For Highway Stimulus Plans Infrastructure advocates’ eyes lit up on Dec. 6 when Obama in a radio

After three years of delay, design is under way on a key component of one of the nation’s largest airport intermodal construction projects. But costs have risen, and Miami-Dade County must incorporate a $30-million cost increase into what could be a $342-million price tag for an automated people-mover system to link the airport with an intermodal center and consolidated car rental facility. The Miami-Dade Aviation Dept. last year rejected three design-build-operate-maintain bids, submitted in 2005, for noncompliance and nonresponsiveness. After negotiations, one of the bidders, a joint venture of Parsons Corp., Pasadena, Calif., and Odebrecht-USA, Coral Gables, Fla., got the

After a year that had many firms on track for record revenue in transportation, the economic crisis that now spans the globe has raised fears that many future projects could be derailed in the coming months. Although market observers see significant continued demand for transportation work, future funding streams remain uncertain as governments grapple with sagging tax revenue, private developers retrench and the credit market threatens public-private partnerships. Photo: Parsons Brinckerhoff The North London Railway Infrastructure project, part of a $14-billion program to expand railways around London, will complete in 2011. Photo: PCL PCL has several projects under way in

The pace of oil-and-natural-gas-related engineering and construction work has been nothing short of frenetic over the past several years, with global engineering and construction giants scrambling to find qualified professionals to staff a slew of multibillion-dollar projects. But the combined effects of falling energy prices, a slumping global economy and the lingering credit crisis are raising doubts about whether the world’s largest energy companies will continue to keep their capital investments flowing in 2009 and 2010. Photo: Nancy Groce, Smithsonian Institution Projects in Alberta’s oil-sands fields are being scaled back. Related Links: 2008 Top Global Sourcebook The international market for

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is conducting a Dec. 19 competitive lease sale for geothermal energy development on 61 parcels totaling nearly 200,000 acres in Utah, Oregon and Idaho. The event will be held in Salt Lake City to lease 47 parcels in western and southwestern Utah, totaling 146,339 acres; 11 parcels in Oregon, totaling 41,362 acres; and three parcels in south central Idaho, totaling 8,676 acres. Photo: Ormat Technologies Inc. Idaho’s first geothermal plant, Raft River, began operation this year. Utah has only two geothermal powerplants, totaling 47 MW, but it has 1,440 MW of developable potential, reports

Last year, the big news in the international powerplant design and construction sector was the unprecedented boom in coal-fired plant work in China, India and other fast-growing, “emerging” economies.

As large-scale wind farms continue to multiply across rural landscapes, building owners in denser locations are looking to save some green with pint-sized wind turbines. But the financial reward is not always the biggest factor weighing on owners’ minds, experts say. Photo: Cascade Engineering Michigan mill is generating public awareness. Concerns over energy prices and fossil fuels also have small wind blowing from all directions. The Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp. is spending $25 million to put up rooftop turbines in New York, while a $11.2-million, low-income housing project designed by Helmut Jahn in Chicago has been generating rooftop power

The U.S. Energy Dept has awarded its last major revamped management contract this year at a U.S. nuclear cleanup megasite, selecting a URS Washington-division-led team for a $3.3-billion, six-year award to manage liquid wastes at the Savannah River Site in Aiken, S.C. It bested a competing bid from a team led by Parsons Corp. and including Fluor Corp., a Parsons spokeswoman confirms. The URS venture also includes Babcock & Wilcox, Bechtel National Inc., CH2M Hill Constructors Inc. and AREVA Federal Services LLC, the U.S. unit of the French nuclear technology firm. The award returns URS to a significant management role