TranSystems wins Hay award at AREMA Conference

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor
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Representatives from TranSystems, AAR, Norfolk Southern and Metra accept the 2016 Dr. William W. Hay Award at the 2016 AREMA Conference.

The American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA) presented the 2016 Dr. William W. Hay Award for Excellence to TranSystems for the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) Program P-1 Englewood Flyover project.

 

The $133-million project consists of a triple-tracked flyover bridge carrying Metra tracks over Norfolk Southern and Amtrak tracks near 63rd Street and State Street on the south side of Chicago. The flyover eliminates the daily at-grade crossing of approximately 80 Metra trains with 50 Norfolk Southern and Amtrak trains. The design covered work between 59th Street on the north to 69th Street on the south. The total length is 8,700 feet, of which the flyover extends for approximately 2,100 feet. The project also included approximately 3,000 feet of retaining wall.

The flyover opened for traffic in the fall of 2014. The Englewood Flyover was the first project planned under the CREATE program to reduce conflicts between passenger and freight trains in the Englewood area and prepare the corridor to accommodate high-speed rail service.

The flyover was funded with $126 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act High-Speed Rail funds, $4.9 million in other federal money, $8.2 million from the state of Illinois and $3 million from the railroad industry, including Metra.

This is the 18th year for the Hay award, which recognizes an outstanding achievement in railroad engineering and honors the memory of Dr. William W. Hay. The 2016 contest had two entries that were judged on three requirements: Innovation, safety and project reliability.

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