VINCI shapes its path in the United States

1 April 2014 - New contracts - United States of America

In the United States, where public authorities are stepping up investment in infrastructure, VINCI recently won major contracts to expand or upgrade transport infrastructure in California, Indiana and Georgia.

The Americans themselves have coined the term "The Infrastructure Cliff" to express the urgent need to build and renovate infrastructure. The amount of investment required is estimated at about 1% of U.S. GDP.

A recent study by McKinsey & Company* found that the expansion and refurbishment of motorways, bridges, railways and airports are among the activities expected to drive the greatest economic growth in the United States between now and 2020.

Urban growth in the United States is also causing problems of congestion along the major transport arteries and driving the search for new solutions.

For all these reasons, VINCI entities are very active in the United States, where they are notably focusing on proposing the kinds of innovation made possible by public-private partnerships, by the Group's infrastructure design-build expertise and by toll financing solutions.

Contract to supply and integrate the free-flow toll system on the new 91 Express Lanes in California

Cofiroute USA, a subsidiary of VINCI Autoroutes, has signed a contract with Riverside County, California to install and integrate the free-flow toll system on the new 91 Express Lanes of the SR-91, the urban toll expressway linking Orange and Riverside Counties, south of Los Angeles. Cofiroute USA is to operate these 10-mile new express lanes, under a contract signed in 2013.

This $25.9 million contract enters into force in March 2014 and provides for integration of free-flow toll equipment, supply of customer management software, cameras and video systems and construction of the traffic operations centre.

Riverside County Transportation Commission (RCTC) plans to open the new express lanes to traffic in early 2017.

The first 10-mile section of the 91 Express Lanes, operated by Cofiroute USA for Orange County, was opened to traffic in December 1995. These toll roads were the world's first to be equipped with a completely automated free-flow system using congestion management pricing.

Financing for the Ohio River East End Crossing project in Indiana

WVB East End Partners, the consortium led by VINCI Concessions (33.3%) with Walsh Investors (33.3%) and Bilfinger Berger PI International Holdings (33.3%), has been chosen for the financing, design, construction, operation and maintenance of the Ohio River Bridges Project’s East End Crossing by the Indiana Finance Authority (IFA).

The public-private agreement is for a 2,500 feet-long (762 m) cable-stayed bridge across the Ohio River that will link Louisville, Kentucky to Southern Indiana, a 1,680 feet in length (512 m) twin-bore tunnel on the Kentucky approach to the bridge, and 19 additional bridges, along with associated roadway improvements and other related infrastructure work. The new East End Bridge will be located about 8 miles (13 km) from downtown Louisville, connecting the Gene Snyder Freeway to the Lee Hamilton Highway.

The works, scheduled to take 3.5 years, are executed by a design-build joint venture including Walsh Construction (60%), VINCI Construction Grands Projets (40%) and Jacobs Engineering for the engineering works. Construction commenced in the summer of 2013 and completion is expected by autumn 2016.

The consortium, led by VINCI Concessions, will be responsible for the operation, routine maintenance and rehabilitation of the infrastructure for a period of 35 years. It will be paid through license-fees calculated on the basis of the infrastructure’s availability.

The Northwest Corridor project in Atlanta in the United States

Hubbard Construction, a subsidiary of Eurovia, has been awarded the design-build contract for the Northwest Corridor project in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States. This project is implemented by a consortium led by Archer Western Contractors (Walsh Group).

Entry into service is scheduled for 2018. The project calls for the addition of 48-km (30 miles) of a new reversible express lanes system, which includes 39 bridges along the I-75 and I-575. The lanes are to be built with minimal interruption to traffic. The project features innovative design with lanes partly built on reinforced soil walls supplied by Reinforced Earth (a subsidiary of Soletanche Freyssinet/VINCI Construction) to limit infrastructure ground coverage.

With this project, the State of Georgia is launching its dedicated express toll lane construction program on major highways around Atlanta; the State will also operate the program and collect tolls.