TRANSIT DESIGN-BUILD QUESTIONS PERSIST

Once again, Congress and the General Accounting Office (GAO) are focusing on design-build contracting as a probable cause of the 30%-plus cost growth on three transit projects that won full-funding grant agreements from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Hearings called for on March 8, 2000, will focus on Tren Urbano in San Juan, Puerto Rico; South Piers in Boston, Massachusetts; and the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) extension to the airport in San Francisco, California. Design-build proponents say design-build contracting has substantially reduced procurement and construction schedules on all of these projects. GAO is conducting a larger review of design-build experience for release in approximately 6 months. GAO's testimony will review links between cost growth and contracting approaches on these three transit projects, as well as the Los Angeles, California, subway system and the light rail projects in Salt Lake City, Utah, and St. Louis, Missouri. The congressional committees dealing with transportation are not well informed on design-build contracting, and the poor early experience on transit projects could become a big negative. Design-build critiques focus on transit agencies inexperience with complex procurements, lack of risk transfer to the private builders, and the high cost premium paid by governments for design-build schedule savings.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/19598638
• Corporate Authors:

  Public Works Financing

  147 Elmer Street
  Westfield, NJ  United States  07090-2433
• Publication Date: 2000-2

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: p. 1-2
• Serial:
  • Public Works Financing
  • Volume: 137
  • Publisher: Public Works Financing
  • ISSN: 1068-0748

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Congressional hearings; Construction scheduling; Contracting; Costs; Design build; Financing; Government funding; Procurement; Public transit
• Identifier Terms: San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District; Tren Urbano; U.S. Federal Transit Administration; U.S. General Accounting Office; United States Congress
• Geographic Terms: Boston (Massachusetts); Los Angeles (California); Saint Louis (Missouri); Salt Lake City (Utah); San Francisco (California); San Juan (Puerto Rico)
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Finance; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00789021
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Mar 26 2000 12:00AM