The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA), has awarded Sener the contract to develop the engineering and environmental services for the Palmdale to Burbank section of the California high speed line. The engineering and technology group is a renowned expert in railways and urban transportation, specifically in high speed rail implementation. It has already participated in projects in the Golden state, such as Los Angeles Union Station.
The contract calls for Sener to perform preliminary design for the 45 miles high speed line section from Palmdale station in the north, to the Burbank Airport station in the south. These engineering services will include conceptual design engineering, analyzing various alternatives before selecting the preferred one. Furthermore, SENER will prepare the tender bid documents for design and build (D&B) contracts. Sener is the prime consultant, subcontracting major American companies including HDR and Kleinfelder for engineering, Circlepoint for environment, MBI for outreach and PlaceWorks for urban planning.
The Palmdale – Burbank section will pass through urban, rural and natural areas. Sener will define the footprint for environmental impact analysis and the right of way to be acquired, for the track alignment, stations, and ancillary elements. Among the alternatives a log bored tunnel will be analyzed, and the Station areas will include an extensive Urban Planning exercise together with the Palmdale and Burbank City planners.
Following award of the contract, the CEO of Sener USA, Francisco Fernández, said, “As experts in high speed rail lines that runs through major city centers, we're going to apply all of our know-how to plan and design an efficient solution that will be respectful of the environment while being accessible and convenient for passengers. Given Sener’s expertise, we hope this contract will open a fruitful collaboration with the CHSRA”.
