Herzog, FlatironDragados nab $997M LA light rail job

A Herzog and FlatironDragados team has won a $997 million contract to help build the Southeast Gateway Line, which will connect southeast L.A. County to downtown Los Angeles. 

The new 14.5-mile, double track light rail line is expected to cost at least $8.6 billion and will include nine new stations, running from Artesia, California, to the Slauson/A Line Station. The project’s second phase, not included in the team’s scope, will take passengers north to downtown Los Angeles.

The joint venture will deliver the early enabling project for the upcoming line, per an April 3 news release from Saint Joseph, Missouri-based rail contractor Herzog. 

WSP is the lead environmental and design consultant, according to a February 2025 news release from the Montreal-based contractor.

The project is using the Construction Manager/General Contractor delivery method, per Herzog. Work entails relocating existing utilities and freight tracks from Union Pacific Railroad and the Port of Los Angeles/Port of Long Beach along the 14.5-mile-long right-of-way, and relocating 8.7 miles of freight track in a shared-use corridor. 

The freight relocation process includes constructing 52,000 feet of new mainline track, 26 new at-grade crossings and temporary track shooflies to maintain railroad operations during construction, according to Herzog. Crews will adjust 571 impacted utilities along the project corridor, including water, sewer and storm drain infrastructure.

Teams will also build the new elevated Firestone Metro Station, as well as a vehicle access structure below the UPRR freight rail and a new pedestrian overhead bridge near Paramount High School to allow passage over the UPRR track, according to Herzog. 

Additional project scope includes 12,000 linear feet of retaining walls and sound walls, site clearance and demolition as well as hazardous soil abatement work. 

The project received a $231 million grant from the California State Transportation Agency’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program in 2024, according to the project website. However, LA Metro is concerned that the Trump administration will cut off crucial federal funding for the line, the Press-Telegram reported.

For now, preconstruction and early works — including hazmat abatement, demolition and select utility relocations — are slated to occur in 2025 and 2026, according to Herzog. Construction on the project will begin in early 2027, with completion expected in 2030. LA Metro expects the overall line to open in 2035, per the project website.