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    1. Rail
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    Archer Western Herzog JV awarded design-build contract for DART's Cotton Belt rail line

    Dec. 18, 2018
    The Cotton Belt line includes 10 total stations as well as interchanges with the DART light rail Orange, Green and Red lines, the TEXRail commuter line to Fort Worth and local bus services.
    DART
    A rendering of what future Cotton Belt trains may look like.
    A rendering of what future Cotton Belt trains may look like.

    Archer Western Herzog JV has secured a $783 million design-build contract for Dallas Area Rapid Transit's (DART) Cotton Belt commuter rail line. Jacobs Engineering will be the project's lead designer. Archer Western Herzog JV is composed of Irving-based Archer Western Construction and Fort Worth-based Herzog Contracting Corp. 

    The 26-mile line will stretch across North Texas from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to Plano, and it will connect northern areas of Tarrant, Dallas and Collin counties.

    Cotton Belt includes 10 total stations, as well as interchanges with the DART light rail Orange, Green and Red lines, the TEXRail commuter line to Fort Worth and local bus services. Stations will be located in Dallas, Carrollton, Addison, Richardson and Plano. 

    "North Texas is booming, and this reliable, local transit option will be a welcomed addition for many residents," said David Casey, president of Archer Western's heavy civil division. "We are thrilled to partner with DART and connect the communities of North Texas via Cotton Belt's high-quality transit service." 

    In addition to numerous past DART projects, Archer Western and Herzog are delivering transportation infrastructure in tandem across the Dallas/Fort Worth region. The companies are in the final stages of constructing TEXRail, a new 27-mile commuter rail project for Trinity Metro extending from downtown Fort Worth into Terminal B at the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Archer Western is also completing a separate contract for the new DFW Terminal B station, the terminus for TEXRail.

    Construction on the Cotton Belt line will begin in 2019 with project completion anticipated in 2022.

    About the Author

    Mischa Wanek-Libman | Editor in Chief

    Mischa Wanek-Libman serves as editor in chief of Mass Transit magazine. She is responsible for developing and maintaining the magazine’s editorial direction and is based in the western suburbs of Chicago.

    Wanek-Libman has spent more than 20 years covering transportation issues including construction projects and engineering challenges for various commuter railroads and transit agencies. She has been recognized for editorial excellence through her individual work, as well as for collaborative content. 

    She is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association's Marketing and Communications Committee and serves as a Board Observer on the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) Board of Directors.  

    She is a graduate of Drake University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication with a major in magazine journalism and a minor in business management.

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