C2 EZ RE THE WASHINGTON POST.SUNDAY, MAY 8 , 2022
commuterthe testing phase] about a year
before that, in fall 2025.Q: Construction is already more
than 4^1 / 2 years behind schedule.
How confident are you in that
opening date, and why?
Gohde: I think we’re very
confident. We had a good deal of
time during the [new
construction contract] proposal
phase to study and understand
the project. The previous
contractor put together an
extremely good traffic
management plan. ... To be
totally honest, there are
significant penalties to us to not
finish on time. Those penalties
exceed $200,000 a day for every
day we’re late.Q: What are you doing now?
Gohde: The due diligence
process is pretty intense. We had
an opportunity [to inspect the
work done by the initial
contractor] during the proposal
phase but only for those things
that we could actually see above
ground. Now it’s a question of
having a look at, understanding
and feeling confident with those
things that are below ground,
things that we have to uncover.
Bosso: We always envisionedthis as a team between the
concessionaire and the state of
Maryland. That’s why MTA is
continuing to progress [moving]
utilities and that critical path
work. We didn’t want things to
just stop for a period, so the
project is still progressing.Q: How much of the
construction is already done?
Gohde: A good portion of the
underground work has been
done. The operations and
maintenance facility in
Glenridge [in Prince George’s
County] has been constructed.
MTA will turn that building over
to us in June. There has been
some limited track work done. ...
The shaft that connects the
Purple Line station in Bethesda
to the [Metro] Red Line is 75
percent complete, but there’s
still a good amount of rock
excavation that we must
complete to make that
connection. The project is in a
fairly good place for us to now
demonstrate real progress, to do
things that the public will
recognize as a railroad.
Bosso: We can’t forget the
light-rail vehicles, which are
[being manufactured] up in
Elmira, N.Y. They’ve beenunaffected by some of the
challenges here on the ground.
We have 10 or 12 vehicles that
could be shipped to site today if
we had the track and other
facilities built.Q: Are you far enough along now
that you don’t anticipate more
delays, or could they still
happen?
Gohde: As is very typical of any
construction project, we don’t
know everything that we don’t
know. But we do have a good feel
for the things that typically
happen on an infrastructure
project. A good number of the
surprises have been uncovered
and resolved, but there will be
things. It’s the very nature of the
beast. ... We’ll have the typical
setbacks that will cause us to
maybe accelerate activity in a
certain area so that we can
maintain the schedule.Q: Terry, have you ever taken
over a project that’s been
partially built by others and has
lain dormant for so long?
Gohde: I must be totally honest
and tell you that it’s a first for
me. There aren’t a lot of these
projects. That’s a good thing,
right? This project is quiteunique in where it is and how we
come aboard and how we
complete it, but we have had an
opportunity to develop a very
good understanding of the
project and exactly where it is.Q: What have you found so far
when you’ve examined work
done by the previous contractor?
Gohde: We have not found
anything that is of great concern
to us. These things are built to
last for 50 years, so the
construction itself is quite
robust. ... The major work really
is in good shape.Q: Where will construction
resume first?
Gohde: First and foremost for
us is going to be the
[operations and maintenance]
facility at Glenridge. We had
intended to move on to the
University of Maryland campus
and begin drainage work this
summer. We realized that was
not the best way to move
forward. There are still
considerable utility relocations
being completed by MTA. We
didn’t want to make a mistake
and open up the campus and
then not be able to put it back
in the condition that theUpcoming Purple Line
open houses
Purple Line project officials have
scheduled two open houses about
construction restarting:- May 25, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Silver
Spring Civic Building, 1 Veterans
Place in downtown Silver Spring. - May 26, 6:30-8:30 p.m.,
University of Maryland Stamp
Student Union atrium, 3972
Campus Drive in College Park.
PURPLE LINE TRANSIT PARTNERS
TOP: A Purple Line overpass in Riverdale Park, Md., sits unfinished in 2020, when the prior contractor on the project quit over disputes
with the state. ABOVE: Terry Gohde, left, is the project manager for Maryland Transit Solutions, the new construction joint venture.
Doran Bosso, right, is chief executive of Purple Line Transit Partners, the private consortium managing the project for the state.PURPLE LINE TRANSIT PARTNERSBY KATHERINE SHAVERMore than 1^1 / 2 years since the
contractor building Maryland’s
Purple Line quit in a dispute over
delays and cost overruns, a new
construction team is gearing up
to complete the first direct
suburb-to-suburb rail line in the
Washington region.
The Maryland Transit
Administration has continued
overseeing some work, such as
moving utility lines. However, a
team led by the American
subsidiaries of Spanish firms
Dragados and OHL will complete
most of it. Construction will cost
the state $3.4 billion — up from
the original $2 billion — and
remains more than 4^1 / 2 years
behind schedule.
Reviving a megaproject that
has lain mostly dormant since
September 2020 is no small feat.
It requires bringing in staff and
equipment from around the
country to rev up 16 miles of
abandoned construction sites.
Terry Gohde is the project
manager for Maryland Transit
Solutions, the new construction
joint venture. Doran Bosso is
chief executive of Purple Line
Transit Partners, the private
consortium managing the project
for the state. They spoke with The
Washington Post about what the
construction reboot will look like.
The interview was edited for
length and clarity.
A gentle warning to Maryland
residents and motorists: They say
the most painful construction is
yet to come.
Q: When will major work
resume?
Gohde: Construction has never
really stopped. [The Maryland
Transit Administration] has
continued some critical utility
relocations. For us, major
construction will start in late
summer.
Q: Does that mean August?
Gohde: Yeah. We’ll start to gear
up with folks here over the next
four weeks. We’re bringing in
some surveyors and others to
assist us in the due diligence
process so that we understand
what the starting point is. In
many cases, we’re going to build
on top of something that has
been started. We’ll need to
uncover those things. We’ll need
to have a look at them, assess
them and then actually start to
build on top of existing
foundations.
Q: We’ve been quoting Purple
Line project officials saying
construction would resume this
spring. Did that start date slip?
Gohde: It’s the difference
between “construction” and
what the public sees as
construction, such as when
they’re going to see a crane or a
large piece of earth-moving
equipment. It hasn’t slipped at
all. For us, it’s always been a 90-
to a 120-day buildup.
Q: When will the Purple Line
begin carrying passengers?
Gohde: Opening date is October
- But the public will get a
look at the [light-rail] vehicles
running on track work [during
college requires for students
coming back in August. So we’ll
be primarily focused on the two
ends of the project — the
Glenridge facility, yard and test
track and the cavern and
[elevator] shaft in Bethesda
that makes the connection from
the Purple Line to the Red Line.Q: How will construction
expand from there?
Gohde: I think the part of the
project that will be most
annoying to the public will be
the road widening and
reconstruction that has to
occur on the east end of the
project [east of downtown
Silver Spring]. That
construction will get underway
in earnest next spring, and
then it will pretty much be a
continuous process of widening
the road to one side while
diverting traffic [to the other].
That will be a relatively drawn-
out process with a very good
traffic management plan, but it
won’t be 100 percent painless
by any means. We want to be
ready to hit that work and get it
done as quickly and efficiently
as possible.Q: A lot of cyclists and runners
miss the Capital Crescent Trail
that has closed temporarily for
Purple Line construction
between downtown Bethesda
and Silver Spring. Could the trail
be reopened before the trains
begin carrying passengers?
Gohde: I don’t know that we’ve
discussed that. I’m reluctant to
say yes or no. I would hope so.
We’ll be done through that area
earlier than in the street-
running area here on the eastern
end. I’m reluctant today to tell
you what that date might be.
Bosso: I think we are well
aware of the sensitivity and the
desire. You’re talking to two
cyclists, so we have a personal
appreciation for the folks that
would like that facility open. As
we get into the details of the
schedule, we’ll know the art of
the possible. You have to take
into account construction
access. Even though it might
look finished, are we still going
to be taking trucks or vehicles
across there? As we get to those
details, we will work with the
team to make as much open as
we can and also communicate
that effectively to the public.Q: What else should people
know about the project at this
point?
Bosso: It’s still the same great
project it’s always been. We’re
really excited to deliver it. We’re
excited about the positive
economic and community
benefits it’s going to have and
[how it will] improve
transportation in the region.
Now we’re gearing up to deliver
it, finally, to the people who have
been so patient with us and have
continued to support us over the
years.Maryland Purple Line construction will resume in August, officials say
After long delay, new
project managers eager
to hit 2026 completionTONI L. SANDYS/THE WASHINGTON POST(202) 919-9209 (301) 778-4222 (703) 650-9337