AECOM to design Toronto’s Air Rail Link spur

AECOM says it has been named lead design subconsultant to a joint venture contracted to design, build, and finance a spur line and passenger station as part of Ontario's Air Rail Link (ARL).

ARL will connect the existing Georgetown GO Transit regional rail line and link Toronto’s two busiest transportation hubs, Union Station, in downtown Toronto, and Lester B. Pearson International Airport.

Metrolinx, overseeing transportation planning for the Greater Toronto Area, and Infrastructure Ontario selected the AirLinx Transit Partners consortium

for a joint venture contract worth C$129 million (US$130.03 million). The spur line will be delivered using Ontario’s alternative financing and procurement delivery model, which is managed by Infrastructure Ontario.

As lead designer for the consortium, AECOM will provide expertise in architectural, structural, rail, utility relocation and environmentally sensitive design for the three-kilometer (1.8-mile) spur line that will cross above and below major existing access infrastructure. It will also link Metrolinx’s GO Transit’s Kitchener line to Toronto Pearson Terminal 1.

The scope of services includes a new elevated guideway and track on high-level bridges and at-grade rail structures; relocating existing utilities; providing provisions for the future electrification of the ARL; and ensuring that construction on airport lands will not interrupt the Greater Toronto Airport Authority’s capital works program.

“This win solidifies AECOM’s position as a leader in developing transit infrastructure in the Greater Toronto Area,” says AECOM’s Marko Prgin, project director and vice president of the firm’s transportation alternative delivery business in Ontario. “AECOM will be helping our clients meet the challenges of the project head on, including the demanding construction schedule and the technical

complexities of working within airport lands while maintaining uninterrupted operations.”