Elaine Silver is a freelance journalist, writer, researcher and book editor. She’s written for The New York Times, Business Week, the Petaluma Argus-Courier, Inbound Logistics andDesign-Build. She has also been a new technology columnist at Constructor Magazine. In addition to reporting and writing, Elaine has been a conference editor for the design and construction community, including the Architectural Record Innovation Conference and the Engineering-News Record Leadership Conferences.
The Sixth Street Viaduct Bridge in Los Angeles—the site of numerous Hollywood movie scenes—has reached the end of its career. City engineers are reviewing a request-for-proposals document for a final cable-stayed design to replace the structure, which consists of two prestressed-concrete viaducts and a double steel-arch center span.
Related Links: First Phase of California High-Speed Rail Project Ready to Take Off Engineers Will Finally Be Paid For California High-Speed Rail Work The resignations in January of the California High-Speed Rail Authority's chief executive officer, Roelof van Ark, and its chairman, Thomas Umberg, several months before construction is scheduled to begin the first leg of high-speed-rail construction in the Central Valley, puts the alternative transportation initiative under renewed scrutiny. During Van Ark's 20-month tenure, costs were revised. Estimates more than doubled, to $98.5-billion. That huge dollar amount further erodes public support for the project and undermines its funding.Gov. Jerry
The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors on Jan. 24 approved a runway improvement and extension project as well as an airport expansion plan for the Sonoma County-Charles Schultz Airport, which is located in the heart of California wine country about 75 miles from San Francisco International Airport.
The contract for $103.3 million involves building 37 miles of track, repairing 20 bridges, and preparing railroad crossings and stations. The rail is scheduled to be in service in 2014.
Rendering courtesy Hyundai Hyundai's new headquarters, designed by Gensler, will seek LEED Gold status. Looking at Hyundai Motor America, a division of Korea-based Hyundai Motor Co., it would be hard to tell there is a global economic crisis. Hyundai's U.S. car sales were up 20% in 2011 compared with 2010's sales. In total, Hyundai sold 645,691 cars this past year in the U.S. The company is tearing down its existing U.S. headquarters in Fountain Valley, Calif.—about 30 miles south of Los Angeles—and investing $150 million in a new one. Hyundai joins other major corporations—Google and Coca-Cola, for example—that are putting
North of San Francisco, the North Bay’s first commuter rail line is inching toward construction. Meandering through the hilly suburbs of Marin County and the farms and vineyards of Sonoma County, the new rail line is designed to relieve pressure from the jam-packed 101 Freeway, providing a less stressful ride for North Bay commuters. Image courtesy of Sumitomo Corp. of America SMART has purchased 18 Diesel Multiple Units from Sumitomo Corp. of America. As the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit system moves ahead, other California rail projects—such as the $100-billion San Francisco-to-Anaheim high-speed rail line—are hitting some speed bumps.Last month, the
MAP COURTESY OF SONOMA-MARIN AREA RAIL TRANSIT North of San Francisco, the North Bay's first commuter rail line is inching toward construction. Meandering through the hilly suburbs of Marin County and the farms and vineyards of Sonoma County, the new rail line is designed to relieve pressure from the jam-packed 101 Freeway, providing a less stressful ride for North Bay commuters. As the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit system moves ahead, other California rail projects—such as the $100-billion San Francisco-toAnaheim high-speed rail line—are hitting some speed bumps.Seed MoneyLast month, the Bay Area's Metropolitan Transportation Commission released $33.1 million to the Sonoma-Marin
