Rising costs are hitting FasTracks before major construction has even begun.
RTD wants to redesign parts of the first light-rail line, saving $22 million to offset a recent surge in the price of steel, concrete and other construction commodities.
The biggest change for the west line proposed by the Regional Transportation District is to shift tracks to the south side of U.S. 6 between the Federal Center and Red Rocks Community College.
The earlier plan called for construction of an 850-foot tunnel under the U.S. 6/Simms Street interchange to route trains to the highway’s north side.
Under that plan, the college was to be linked to the rail station by a pedestrian bridge over U.S. 6.
The changes won’t reduce the $511 million that RTD expects to spend on the west line, said Liz Rao, the agency’s assistant general manager for planning and development, but they will help cushion the rising cost of building materials.
Looking at cost reductions now, before construction begins, is the “best way of bringing it in on time and on budget,” she added.
The west is the first of six rail lines that will be built as part of RTD’s $4.7 billion FasTracks expansion. West trains are scheduled to start running in 2013.
Red Rocks Community College and the city of Lakewood are happy about the changes.
Shift of the rail line to the south side of the highway will provide “greater accessibility for our students and campus visitors,” said college president Cliff Richardson, who was briefed Thursday.
Lakewood traffic engineer David Baskett also welcomed the alignment switch.
“We never understood why they wanted to tunnel” under U.S. 6 and put the rail line “up against a single-family neighborhood,” Baskett said.
RTD is proposing other money-saving changes for the rail corridor, including:
A plan for the train to cross West Colfax Avenue at a new location, allowing for a shorter bridge than originally planned.
Possible elimination of pedestrian bridges over U.S. 6 at the community college and Jefferson County Government Center stations.
Reduction in the frequency of peak-hour train service west of the Federal Center from every 5 minutes to every 15 minutes.
Using two rail crossing gates with median barriers at some highway-rail intersections instead of a more elaborate and expensive four-gate system that ensures motorists cannot drive around lowered gates.
If costs keep escalating, RTD may have to look for savings on the other five lines as well, Rao said.
“We have to be very ingenious about how we design things.”
