California 20, September 25, 2022

Atkinson Moves Mountains On State Highway Project

By Chuck MacDonald CEG

MotoristsCORRESPONDENTunderstand

that it can be aggravating — and even dangerous — being trapped behind a line of tractor trailers going in the same direction. Caltrans and crews from Atkinson Construction are removing some of the aggravation and adding safety to a stretch of State Route 46 in central California.Calledthe Highway 46 Corridor Project, State Route 46 between Paso Robles and Cholame is a critical east-west road that connects the Central Coast and Central Valley. This road is one of the few east-west routes linking I-5 to U.S. Highway 101. This route serves both interregional and interstate traffic. It also is used by commuters of Paso Robles, Cholame, Shandon and Whitley Gardens.

The project is part of a grand plan begun more than a decade ago. The first three sections covered 18 mi. and have already been completed. Construction on the current section of the Highway 46 Corridor is 5 mi. and will be expected to run from early this year to 2024. The final two phases are the Wye phase and the Antelope grade. The Wye phase is planned for start of construction in March 2023 and Antelope Grade is in the design phase.The Cholame phase calls for huge amounts of dirt to be removed by scrapers and dozers for placement in other areas of the project. Relocating the dirt will allow room for additional lanes of traffic and for the realignment of the current road to a safer configuration.

Atkinson Construction recently performed upgrades to State Route 46, a critical east-west road road that connects the Central Coast and Central Valley. Part of the project consisted of constructing box culverts, which was completed in August.

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Volvo LIGHTS Project Wraps Up in Southern California

The Volvo LIGHTS project is a three-year project that brought together 14 public and private partners to design and implement a blueprint for the ecosystem support necessary to deploy battery-electric trucks and equipment at scale.

Volvo Trucks North America announced the culmination of the Volvo LIGHTS project — a three-year project that brought together 14 public and private partners to design and implement a blueprint for the robust support ecosystem necessary to deploy battery-electric trucks and equipment at scale.During the project, which ran from 2019 to 2022 in California’s South Coast Air Basin, Volvo Trucks deployed its first Class 8 pilot Volvo VNR Electric trucks to fleet operators to collect real-world operating data and customer feedback ahead of announcing its commercial model in December 2020.

“By working closely with an extraordinary group of public and private partners through the Volvo LIGHTS project, we were able to validate key processes around Class 8 battery-electric truck adoption for commercial transport segments and identify challenges that needed to be addressed for widespread market introduction,” said Peter Voorhoeve, president of Volvo Trucks North America. “The most valuable takeaway for our team was really experiencing the value of close cross-functional and cross-organizational collaboration as we continue to drive innovation and develop new solutions for sustainable transport.”

The Volvo LIGHTS project was led by Volvo Group North America and California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District (South Coast AQMD), and included NFI Industries (NFI), Dependable Highway Express (DHE), TEC Equipment, Shell Recharge Solutions (formerly Greenlots), Port of Long Beach, Port of Los Angeles, Southern California Edison (SCE), CALSTART, University of California, Riverside CE-CERT, Reach Out, Rio Hondo College and San Bernardino ValleyDuringCollege.the multi-year project, Volvo Group North America collaborated with each organization to develop programs and

best practices that would help lay the foundation for the successful commercialization of battery-electric freight trucks, including but not limited to:

Identifying ideal routes for electrification: Volvo Trucks deployed 30 Volvo VNR electric trucks to 11 fleets to operate in its daily Southern California fleet routes to assess many factors that may impact vehicle range, including topography, ambient temperature, traffic patterns, driving styles and more. The insights gained were informative as Volvo Trucks introduced the Electric Performance Generator (EPG), its route planning tool which enables fleet managers to simulate real-world routes for their VNR Electric trucks.

Comprehensive dealer support: TEC Equipment, Volvo Trucks’ largest West Coast dealership, provided uptime support to the fleet customers that leased VNR Electrics through the Volvo LIGHTS project. The hands-on experience gained during the project led to TEC Equipment Fontana becoming the nation’s first Volvo Trucks certified electric vehicle dealer and spurring the rollout of certified dealerships across North America.

Reliable and cost-effective charging infrastructure: Multiple project partners collaborated with Shell Recharge Solutions and SCE on the installation and energization of 58 networked public and private electric vehicle charging stations, identifying opportunities to streamline processes, shorten installation timelines and refine existing laws related to allowing entities other than utilities to re-sell electricity for EV charging. SCE also conducted a site grid system impact study to help plans for supporting a future of fully electrified goods movement.

Technician training programs: Rio Hondo College and San Bernardino Valley College both collaborated with Volvo Trucks to launch heavy-duty electric truck technician training programs, with a combined

total of more than 45 graduates throughout the project.

First responder training programs: Throughout the project, Reach Out, a local outreach organization worked with Volvo Trucks to keep community stakeholders informed about the project. This partnership helped facilitate the development of training materials for first responders to raise awareness about the high-voltage components on the Volvo VNR Electric and develop the first responder safety document that is now publicly available from the National Fire Protection Agency.

“This project shows how important it is for public and private entities to work together to bring zero-emission technologies and infrastructure to the nation,” said Ben J. Benoit, chair of South Coast AQMD’s governing board. “Now that the project is coming to an end, we look forward to seeing these cleaner trucks on the road, and the impact they will have on air quality.”

In recognition of the project team’s leadership and tangible results achieved through Volvo LIGHTS, the project received several awards, including:

• 2020 Innovation Award — Breathe Southern California;

• 2020 Blue Sky Award — CALSTART;

• 2021 Climate Leadership Award — Center for Climate and Energy Solutions and The Climate Registry;

• 2022 Innovation Clean Air Technology Award — South Coast Air Quality Management District;

• 2022 Outstanding Achievement in Sustainability — Southern California Association of Governments.

Roundup

Together with the Volvo Group, Volvo Trucks hosted a Volvo LIGHTS Roundup on Aug. 23 at the Ontario Convention Center in Southern California to share exclusive insights from Volvo LIGHTS project part-

ners on how to successfully scale truck freight electrification. The Volvo LIGHTS Roundup featured off-site tours, speaker panels and a display of Volvo VNR Electric trucks from project participants, including NFI, Penske Truck Leasing (Penske), Medline, Quality Custom Distribution (QCD), 10 Roads Express, Saia and SCE.

“Zero emission trucks work — as this project shows — and we need strong rules, in many states and federally, promoting them. This project shows that this technology can serve business and deliver protections that will benefit the health of our communities that need it the most,” said Craig Segall, California Air Resources Board (CARB) deputy executive officer of mobile sources andTheincentives.VolvoLIGHTS project was made possible by a $44.8 million award to South Coast AQMD from the CARB as part of California Climate Investments (CCI), a statewide initiative that puts billions of capand-trade dollars toward reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, strengthening the economy and improving both public health and the environment. South Coast AQMD also contributed $4 million from its Clean Fuels Fund. Volvo Group and its partners contributed $43 million in matching funds for a total project of $91 million.

A Volvo LIGHTS Lessons Learned Guidebook was produced to document key insights gained as the project partners designed and implemented innovative programs and technologies critical for the widescale success of battery-electric freight movement. To download the 22-page guidebook, Bringing Battery-Electric Freight Trucks to Market: From Demonstration to Commercialization, visit https://www.lightsproject.com/downloads.Formoreinformation about the Volvo LIGHTS project, visit www.lightsproject.com.

(All photos courtesy of Volvo.)

Volvo Trucks deployed its first Class 8 pilot Volvo VNR Electric trucks to fleet operators to collect real-world operating data and customer feedback ahead of announcing its commercial model in December 2020.

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State Adjusts Plans for 45-Mi. Underground Water Tunnel

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) A new plan to reroute how water moves from wetter Northern California to drier Southern California would ferry some of it through a single, 45-mi. underground tunnel, wrapping around the state’s existing water delivery system and dumping it into the main aqueduct that flows south to vast swaths of farmland and millions of people.Theproposal would build one tunnel to take water from the Sacramento River, the state’s largest, to the California Aqueduct for delivery further south. It’s scaled back from the two-tunnel plan championed by former Gov. Jerry Brown and the latest iteration of a project that has been talked about and planned in some form, but never constructed, for about half a century.When Gov. Gavin Newsom took office in 2019, he ordered water officials to scrap the existing plan and start over. With one tunnel, the new proposal moves less water and aims to reduce harms to the environment. But most critics said the new route will still harm endangered species like salmon and people who rely on the water in the north.

The two sides have become so entrenched that the project’s fate will ultimately depend on whether Newsom or a future governor can muster the political will to push it through, said Jeffrey Mount, a senior fellow of Water Policy Center at the Public Policy Institute of California.

“This project is unlikely to be decided on its technical merits,” he Statesaid.water officials said a tunnel is badly needed to modernize the state’s water infrastructure in the face of climate change, which scientists said is likely to cause both prolonged

droughts and major deluges of rain and snow. It also would better shield the state’s water supply from the risk of an earthquake that could cause levees to crumble and ocean salt water to flood into the system.

Though California is in the third year of a punishing drought, it saw record rainfall last October and another major dump of rain and snow in December, some of which the state was unable to capture.

“Our water infrastructure was not built for that,” said Wade Crowfoot, secretary of California’s Natural Resources Agency.

The Department of Water Resources plan analyzes the effects of the project on the environment, residents, fish and farmland.Officials did not release a price tag. A prior estimate for a different single-tunnel route put it at approximately $16 billion. It would be paid for by water agencies that contract with the state to use it.

Still, even if the political support to build it is there, construction likely wouldn’t break ground until at least 2028 and would take more than a decade, said Carrie Buckman, environmental program manager of the project.

The preferred route would build two stations to pull water from the Sacramento River just south of the capital city, then carry that water south alongside Interstate 5 before breaking off toward Bethany Reservoir at the top of the California Aqueduct, the state’s main channel for moving water south, built in the 1960s.

Two in three Californians, or approximately 27 million people, rely on water that comes from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, a vital estuary where the two rivers min-

gle with tidal flows from the Pacific Ocean before it is conveyed south through the State Water Project.

At the southern end of the Delta, state and federally run pumping plants suck up the water and send it south. The proposed tunnel project would take the water from the Sacramento River before it reaches the Delta.

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is the state’s largest water contractor, using water from the Delta to supply 19 million people, including the city of Los Angeles. The district is working to expand its supply from other sources, but the tunnel project is critical to provide flexibility and ensure the state is capturing all of the water that it can, said Adel Hagekhalil, the district’s general manager.

The Delta region is home to millions of people, more than 625 sq. mi. of farmland and critical species like endangered salmon and Delta smelt. Advocates worry the tunnel will divert that fresh water before it reaches them.

The state already lacks enough water to keep the Delta flourishing and to fulfill its existing water delivery contracts.

State officials said the tunnel would only be used when there is a lot of water flowing through the river, like after a major rainstorm. Environmental restrictions already limit how much water the Delta pumps can move at certain times of year, regardless of supply, to avoid harming fish.

Water officials said the chosen path would have the least negative consequences of the various options. Still, the 10-year construction would require removing 71 buildings, including 15 homes, as well as overtaking 2,340 acres of farmland and running through cultural resources and sites significant to tribal communities, the report said.

State Awards Balfour Beatty $235M Worth of Projects

General contractor Balfour Beatty has been awarded multiple contracts totaling more than $235 million in value to construct essential K-12, correctional/justice and federal projects across California.

The project awards on behalf of local Unified School Districts (USD), San Diego County and Marine Corps exemplifies Balfour Beatty’s reputation for exceptional service and operational excellence, and the company’s ongoing commitment and expertise in providing modern facilities that meet the growing needs of local communities throughout the state.

“We’re honored to continue our buildings legacy in California through the delivery of projects in the high-growth K-12 education, correctional/justice and federal market sectors across the state,” Brian Cahill, Balfour Beatty president in California, said in a statement.

The awarded projects in California include:

Fontana USD’s New Secondary Academy

The $99 million lease-leaseback contract delivers a new, technologically innovative secondary school in northern Fontana. Once complete, the school will be

a two-story, 154,670-sq.-ft. building featuring an administration center, cafeteria and various learning spaces such as vocational classrooms, science labs, flexible performing arts spaces and a fitness and student center. Preconstruction services are under way and construction is scheduled to begin in fall 2023.

Fontana USD’s Sierra Lakes Elementary School Renovation

The $16 million project delivers renovations to the school’s classroom building and kindergarten classrooms. The project provides 15 new 4th and 5th grade classrooms in a two-story building that features a second-level outdoor classroom area overlooking the San Bernardino Mountain range.

La Mesa-Spring Valley School District’s Entry Improvements, Slope Mitigation

A $4 million lease-leaseback contract as part of LMSVSD’s Measure V Bond Program for entry improvements and slope mitigation at La Mesa Arts Academy, Parkway Middle School, Spring Valley

Academy and STEAM Academy. Balfour Beatty will provide preconstruction and construction services and is scheduled to start late 2022 with an anticipated completion in 2023.

San Diego USD’s (SDUSD) Kavod Charter School

A $28.8 million lease-leaseback contract to deliver a two-story elementary classroom building, a two-story middle school classroom building and the modernization of an existing classroom building and administration space in northern San Diego. The project also will include HVAC installation and site improvements. Construction activities will start in 2023 with an expected completion in 2026.

SDUSD King Chavez Academy of Excellence’s Modernization

The $28 million project will transform its modular campus into a new education facility where Balfour Beatty will replace all portable classrooms and existing administration building with new, twostory classroom buildings, a one-story administration building, and a food service modular building and lunch shelter.

East Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility Renovation, House Improvements

The $3.4 million project includes the renovation of the building’s dayroom, the replacement of light fixtures and all mounted structures within sleeping units and improvements to the watch tower. It also will include new paint, electrical work, flooring, millwork and ceilings and installation of new decorative metal panels at the second-floor guardrail.

Marine Corps Recruit Depo, San Diego’s P-315 Mess Hall Replacemen

The $56.5 million Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) project features the construction of a new 100,427-sq.-ft. dining facility for Marine Corps recruits that will serve 6,000 personnel and provide 1,800 meals a day. The project also will include all pertinent site improvements and site preparations, mechanical and electrical utilities, loading dock, telecommunications, emergency generator, fire suppression system, landscaping, irrigation, drainage, parking and exterior lighting.

Contractor Teams Focus On Building Slopes for Next Phase

Atkinson’s Progress

The contractor began moving dirt on March 17 and began work on the first bridge on May 1. Workers completed construction of all of the box culverts in August. These structures will serve both for drainage and as wildlife crossings. Despite the massive size of the earthmoving and wildlife protection phases, no specialized equipment has been needed. So far, Atkinson has employed mostly dozers, scrapers and water trucks. Motor graders are being used to flatten and smooth the ground in preparation for paving.

Work teams are currently building slopes for the future roadway and to place permanent erosion control on finished slopes ahead of the winter. The finished surface will be of continuously reinforced concrete paving (CRCP).

Construction on this 5-mi. section of CA 46 will cost approximately $116 million and will be a key part of the corridor.“This widening project follows four completed segments and will make Highway 46 a four-lane, divided expressway from U.S. 101 in Paso Robles to I-5 in Lost Hills, Kern County,” said Alexa Bertola, spokesperson of Caltrans District 5. “The project promises to save time for motorists, enhance safety and ease congestion.”

“This investment follows our ‘fix-it-first’ commitment to repair California’s aging infrastructure, while at the same time increasing transit and active transportation options,” said Caltrans Director Toks Omishakin. “These projects will make our transportation system safer and more convenient for all users and create thousands of good paying jobs in the process.”Bertola noted that from the beginning of the work in March, project planners have kept their eyes on environmental concerns. So far, approximately 1.3 million cu. yds. of dirt has been removed and transported to a place where fill is needed for embankments and other support for the new road. This has saved the need for trucking in thousands of loads of fill

Afterdirt. construction of the new alignment, the existing road will be removed and material will be used as subbase for new eastbound lanes.

“This project will have three stages with the first being the dirt work for the road realignment,” said Bertola.

“Crews also are installing drainage and constructing the new westbound bridge at Cholame Creek.”

The existing asphalt roadway and base will be removed and used as subgrade support.

“It was important to design the project so that it does not waste useful material,” said Bertola. “This sensible step minimizes our carbon footprint.”

The environmental concerns extend beyond recycling of material.“Theproject has two jurisdictional waterways and seven species protection areas,” said Bertola. “There are 18 sensitive species known to exist in the project area.”

The construction team is working with specialists to prevent harming wildlife. In addition, Atkinson Construction, the lead contractor on the project, has installed fencing to keep sensitive species out of the work area.

“Biologists performed surveys and burrow excavations prior to the start of the work,” said Bertola.  CEG (All photos courtesy of Caltrans.)

ATKINSON

The contractor began constructing the new westbound bridge at Cholame Creek in May.

The new box culvert also will serve as a wildlife crossing.

Mechanical

Mechanical

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3199 E Onstott Road Yuba City, CA 95591