Division 20 Portal Widening & Turnback Facility

Zephyr Rail provides Construction Management Support Services and periodic Remote Sensing for the expansion of the Division 20 Rail Yard located in Downtown Los Angeles. To increase service on the Red and Purple lines, Metro’s yard requires widening of the heavy rail tunnel portal south of the US-101 Freeway, a new turnback facility, and expansion and reconfiguration of rail storage tracks.

Zephyr Rail staff conducts constructability reviews for the final design documents; reviews construction phasing strategy; attends yard allocation meetings; provides key coordination services between LA Metro and adjacent stakeholder agencies such as Bureau of Engineering, LA Department of Water and Power and Southern California Gas Company. Zephyr Rail’s relationship with other rail entities eased the ability to obtain railroad agreements on behalf of Metro with Amtrak, BNSF, UPRR and Metrolink for the modification of First Street Bridge over the railroads. The team provides resident engineering, office engineering, inspection, and safety oversight services over the life of the project.

Zephyr Rail’s Remote Sensing team flies the site every four to six weeks. The images are used to anticipate contractor’s deviation from the design drawings, allowing regular, detailed confirmation of the construction process, and provide information to support LA Metro Community Relations efforts and reports to the Board of Directors. Because the flights occur within the air traffic control area of the Los Angeles Police Department Hooper Heliport, the Remote Sensing team coordinates closely with the Heliport to ensure safety on and above the rail.

Division 20 is the sole Heavy Rail Transit yard in Metro’s system, aiming to double its capacity without disrupting operations.