Streetcar bid 10% lower than expected

Old Pueblo Trackworks bid $55.9 million on the project. The city engineers' estimate was $62.4 million.

The city received six bids, all from Arizona and California firms.

The complete 3.9-mile streetcar line project is expected to cost $196.5 million. The construction contract is for the rails, stops and utilities. There is a separate contract for the cars.

The below-estimate contract should help reduce the estimated $7 million to $13 million funding gap for the project.

Much of the project is funded by Regional Transportation Authority funds and by federal grants.

Old Pueblo Trackworks is a joint venture of Granite Construction Co., a heavy civil contractor with local offices, and RailWorks Track Systems Inc., a Minnesota railroad contractor.

The two worked together recently on the 11.6-mile Hiawatha Light Rail Transit Line in Minneapolis, said Granite regional manager Dave Richards.

Granite will employ as many as 100 local workers on the project, including equipment operators, laborers, carpenters, cement masons and truck drivers, he said.

"We're excited about the opportunity to build a signature project for the city of Tucson," he said. "I think this is going to do great things for the city."

The company has been anticipating the project for years, Richards added.

The fast-paced schedule and probable surprises in underground utilities downtown will be challenging, he said.

Construction will likely begin in March, said Carlos de Leon, RTA director of transit services.

Utility and drainage work and the construction of the Cushing Street bridge at Interstate 10 are happening now, he said.

Public open houses will be planned to fill in neighborhoods and businesses about construction schedules in their areas, he said.

Did you know?

The goal is for the streetcar to begin operating in 2013. The line will connect the UA, the Fourth Avenue shopping district, downtown Tucson and the west side.

Contact reporter Becky Pallack at bpallack@azstarnet.com or 573-4346.