DART Red and Blue Line Platform Extension

To accommodate more riders and longer trains, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) initiated a $149 million project to construct light rail station platform extensions of varying lengths and to add special use platform areas to enable three-car train-level boarding at 28 stations originally designed for two-car trains. Schnabel was hired to conduct a formal value engineering study and update the project risk register.

DART is a regional transit agency created by voters and funded with a one-cent local sales tax. Thirteen cities within a 700-square-mile area are served by DART’s buses, Trinity Railway Express, and Light Rail (LRT) commuter rail systems. The LRT – the focus of this project – encompasses 93 miles of track and 64 stations. When the work is complete, DART estimates a 50% increase in capacity at the updated stations and a 12% increase along the corridor overall.

To accomplish and inform our value engineering study, we led a five-day workshop with a 10-member multidisciplinary team from DART, Hill International, VAI, and Solis/Hill. The team generated 71 different ideas that resulted in 12 final and fully developed recommendations for cost savings via design and construction efficiencies. We also managed the risk workshop effort, which involved development, evaluation, and updating of the risk register, as well as preparation of a final risk status report that outlined DART’s risk exposure.