CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE

CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE

APRIL 17, 2002

PROJECT: VEHICLE ACQUISITION PROJECT

CONTRACT: P2000, LOS ANGELES STANDARD LIGHT RAIL VEHICLE, SIEMENS TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS, INC.

ACTION: CONTRACT MODIFICATION IN THE CREDIT AMOUNT OF $337,800

RECOMMENDATION

Authorize the Chief Executive Officer to execute Change Order No. 18 to Contract No. P2000, Los Angeles Standard Light Rail Vehicle, with Siemens Transportation Systems, Inc., to delete the requirement for the vehicle between car warning devices, in the credit amount of $337, 800, decreasing the Total Contract Value from $214,344,337 to $214,006,537.

Within Construction Committee authority: Yes No N/A

BACKGROUND

One of the requirements of the P2000 specification was that the vehicles be equipped with between-car protective devices. This was to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, which mandates that protective devices be provided for vehicles which operate in high level loading configurations. The devices are intended to minimize the possibility of disabled or handicapped patrons falling off the platforms into the space between coupled cars. Appropriate devices include, but are not limited to, pantograph gates, chains, motion detectors, or other suitable devices.

For the P2000 Vehicles, the Metro, in 1992, determined that this function was to be performed by an audible warning device consisting of motion detectors and audible warnings which were included in the original specification. In early 1997, an Metro interdivisional ADA Task Force studied various alternatives to determine the best method to satisfy the ADA requirements and to provide system uniformity on all three Metro existing rail lines and new stations under construction. One of its findings concluded that it would be extremely costly to retrofit and maintain audible warning devices on the existing fleet of vehicles. In addition, such warning devices would not prevent a person from falling off the edge of the platform.

Even though its study was not yet completed, the Task Force recommended that the audible between-car warning device be removed from the P2000 contract. This recommendation was approved by the Interim Chief Executive Officer on May 14, 1997.

The contractor was immediately advised to stop all work on the between-car warning device and to submit a proposal for deletion of the requirement.

Currently, the Metro ADA Compliance Task Force is testing a new and different type between car barrier design which was the subject of a Board Box Item distributed to the Board of Directors on March 15, 2002.

This recommended action will decrease the P2000 Total Contract Value by $337,800, which amount will remain in the project budget. The current status of the contract, including the impact of the recommended action, is shown in Attachment 1. The recommended action does not affect the Fiscal Year Budget or the Sources of Funds, either in fiscal year or over the life of the project.

Metro Board may reject this change, but denial of this change would prevent the Metro from receiving the credit amount due under the Contract. Staff does not recommend this alternative.