Clark Construction Group and Kiewit Infrastructure win $1.2 billion bid

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority formally awarded the primary construction contract Tuesday to complete the Silver Line.

The new rail line will ultimately connect Washington Dulles International Airport and downtown Washington, D.C., by way of Tysons Corner, Reston and Herndon.

The $1.2 billion contract awarded to Clark Construction Group and Kiewit Infrastucture includes three stations in Fairfax County, the airport station, and two stations in Loudoun County, as well as the rail system itself. The group is operating under the name Capital Rail Constructors.

MWAA President and CEO Jack Potter, as well as board members, praised the competitive bidding process that generated a bid about $250 million less than the authority’s cost estimates.

“It brought in proposals from some of the most qualified construction teams in the world,” Potter said of the bid process.

The authority also issued a separate contract for project management services at its Tuesday meeting and will later bid out a contract to construct a rail yard on the airport property. The total project costs will also include new rail cars for the expanded Silver Line, Potter said.

There are still some additional unknown factors, such as whether the project will receive low-interest federal loans, that will affect the total cost of the project, Potter said.

“Our focus remains on trying to drive costs down and to reduce the burden on tolls by finding additional financing,” he said.

The bulk of the Phase II costs will be paid for by bonds backed by future revenues on the Dulles Toll Road.

Construction is wrapping up on the rail project’s first phase, which includes four stations in Tysons Corner and one at Wiehle Avenue in Reston, as the authority prepares to make the transition to the second half of the project.

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