Open house will update high-speed rail work in Madera

The California High-Speed Rail Authority and its contractor, Tutor Perini / Zachry / Parsons, will hold an open house in Madera on April 20 to give residents an update on construction of the state’s high-speed rail project, particularly a three-mile extension of work north of Madera.

The information session will be 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Madera County Library, 121 N. G St. Representatives of the rail authority and the contractors will be available to answer questions about the project, including the design of the rail line, right-of-way concerns and traffic management during construction.

TPZP was awarded the original $1 billion contract in mid-2013 to design and build the first 29-mile construction section of the high-speed train line from about Avenue 17 in Madera to American Avenue at the south end of Fresno. At their March 8 meeting in Sacramento, the rail authority board approved extending the contract to Avenue 19, near Madera’s Amtrak passenger train station along the BNSF Railway tracks northeast of the city. The cost of the extension is expected to be about $154.2 million.

The extension of the rail route will include road overpasses at Avenue 17, Roads 26 and 27, and a bridge over Schmidt Creek, according to the rail authority. Some major work is already underway with construction of a viaduct, or elevated bridge, over the Fresno River east of Madera.

More information on the open house is available by calling 559-274-8975.

This story was originally published March 29, 2016 at 3:26 PM with the headline "Open house will update high-speed rail work in Madera."