Valley LRT project could get rolling by spring
Consortium led by Bombardier wins bid to build $1.8-billion project
Construction on the Valley Line LRT could start as early as this spring, after Edmonton announced the winning bid Wednesday for the 13-kilometre light-rail project.
The $1.8-billion line will be built and run by TransEd Partners, a partnership that includes wellknown names Bombardier and EllisDon.
Bombardier is an aerospace and transportation company founded in Quebec and has projects around the world. EllisDon is an Ontariobased construction company active in Edmonton for the past 35 years. It built the Mazankowski Heart Institute, Commonwealth Stadium and Butterdome.
The partnership also includes Fengate Capital Management, Bechtel, Transdev, ARUP and IBI Group.
Acting city manager Linda Cochrane said the TransEd was chosen from a final list of three bidders. The final contract will be signed in February, after a full review of the financial details. The line is scheduled to open by the end of 2020.
In 2012, city council decided to build the line as a P3, or public-private partnership, to take advantage of funding from the federal government.
Once the contract is signed, the consortium of companies will take on nearly all the risk. They will also be responsible for running and maintaining the line for the next 30 years.
“Ultimately, it’s a city project,” Cochrane said, adding it is the largest project in Edmonton’s history. And even though it is early in the project, it is on budget.
The decision to go with TransEd was made by administration in consultation with the LRT Governance Board, a group of outside experts set up to review the entire contract process.