Minneapolis Light Rail
February 18, 2022
ICE® stays steady and constant in changing construction plans
ICE® has been onsite at the monumental Southwest Light Rail project since 2019. Although there have been delays in the timeline due to the complexity and changing of construction plans and contract modifications. The completion of the METRO Green Line Extension will include 14.5 miles of double track connecting downtown Minneapolis with five local communities through 16 new stations and structures in a corridor that will share 7.8 miles with freight railroad tracks, requiring close coordination with Twin Cities & Western Railroad and BNSF Railway during construction and later during LRT operation. The structures include, according to the metrocouncil.org website (https://metrocouncil.org/News-Events) 29 new bridges (LRT, pedestrian, freight, and roadway); 7 bridge modifications, pedestrian tunnels, 2 "cut-and-cover" LRT tunnels, and more than 100 retaining walls. With an overall budget of $2 billion, this project looks towards a completion date of 2027.
Lunda/McCrossan joint venture was awarded this contract in November of 2018 and got straight to work on the first phases of construction. By March of 2021, Lunda/McCrossan had driven H-Beams for retaining wall supports in areas with buildings that were sensitive to low-frequency vibrations using an ICE® 18ZR Zero Resistance Pile Driver. These experts know soil mechanics and employed an ICE® 50B Vibratory Pile Hammer, 28D Vibratory Pile Driver and two Hydraulic Impact Hammers, the ICE IP-3 and IP-5. Early success with these expert operators and ICE® equipment quickly aided in surpassing timelines.
Today, ICE® is back on site in Minneapolis with our 50B Vibratory Hammer to remove top sheets of the preliminary retaining walls along the roadways. The largest infrastructure in state history has now expanded its budget to $2.75 billion (about $9 per person in the US) and is more than halfway complete.
This team of contractors have installed 95 miles of piles and poured more than 200,000 cubic yards of concrete to complete 11 of 16 stations, 25 of 29 bridges and 7 of 8 tunnels. A total 114 of 131 retaining walls have been completed by this extraordinary team. Additionally, 95% of 946 private utilities and 75% of 1,300 public utilities have been re-routed or upgraded and tracks have been laid.
The METRO Green Line extension is really moving forward because of innovators within Lunda/ McCrossan partnership. Once this job is completed, ICE® is excited to be a part of railroad history. #railroad #buildingrail #utilityupgrade #lundamccrossan
Media Contact-
Pollyanna Cunningham, MA, MBA
Director Marketing, Brand and Media Relations
ICE® - International Construction Equipment, Inc
Office - 704-821-8200
Email - marketing@iceusa.com
