Board of Directors Considering Airport Station Alternatives  

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority is in the process of finalizing preliminary engineering work on the plan for Phase 2 of the Metrorail line through the Dulles Corridor from Wiehle Avenue to Route 772 in Loudoun County. This engineering work will provide needed information for the Airports Authority and its rail project partners, Fairfax and Loudoun Counties, to assess the potential cost and plan for the funding of the next phase of the Dulles Metrorail Project. In 2009, the Airports Authority began the preliminary engineering work to determine the cost of Phase 2. Construction on Phase 1 of the project in the Tysons Corner area also began that year. As a result of this ongoing engineering study, the current estimate for Phase 2 of the Dulles Metrorail Project is approximately $3.83 billion which includes a tunnel and underground station at Dulles Airport. This estimate was shared with the project partners and released today by the Airports Authority as the Board of Directors continues to consider other alternative alignments and station locations for the Dulles Airport Metrorail Station. One alternative could bring an estimated cost savings of $640 million compared to the current plan for an underground tunnel and station. Said Lynn Hampton, President and CEO of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, “We have made a considerable effort to do as exhaustive a study as possible to determine what the plan for Phase 2 of this important project will require in terms of engineering, construction and funding. As we move forward we will continue to review these alternative airport station alignments and project cost estimates carefully in preparation for going to final design on Phase 2. We will know with more certainty the final cost at that time when we have completed our competitive bidding process for the design and construction of Phase 2.We are hopeful that the competitive bid process will result in lower costs than are currently reflected in these preliminary engineering estimates.” The Dulles Metrorail Project plan was developed in 2002 by the Commonwealth of Virginia and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. In 2007, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority took responsibility for the Rail Project and began management of the contract to build Phase 1 of the rail system from West Falls Church to Wiehle Avenue. Phase 1 of the Dulles Metrorail Project, with a cost of $2.7 billion, is well underway. Phase 1 has nearly 20 percent of its construction completed and is scheduled to be completed in 2013. ### Attachment: Phase 1 cost summary and Phase 2 preliminary estimated cost summary Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project Costs September 2010 Elements Phase 1 Phase 2 Current Estimate Guideway, tunnel, track $ 666 million $1.13 billion (2 mile tunnel at Dulles) Stations & Parking $ 317 million $ 725 million (no project garages) (5 new garages and underground station at Dulles) Yard & Shop $ 52 million $ 262 million (expand West Falls Church yard) (new yard and facility at Dulles) Site work & utilities $ 233 million $ 221 million Train Systems $ 278 million $ 272 million Right-of-way and property $ 46 million $ 37 million acquisition Rail cars $ 212 million $ 229 million Professional, design, engineering and management services $ 698 million $ 780 million Contingency funds $ 130 million $ 178 million Roadway improvements $ 123 million N/A TOTAL PROJECT COST: $2.76 billion $3.83 billion (includes current underground Dulles Airport Station plan)