Explanation
1. BACKGROUND
This legislation seeks to authorize the Director of Public Service, or a designee, to enter into a preliminary engineering agreement, and any amendments or modifications thereto as may be necessary, with Norfolk Southern Railway Company (“Norfolk Southern”), and to encumber and expend funds to compensate the same for services performed during the design phase of the Roadway - Livingston Ave - 18th Street to Nelson Road project.
The aforementioned effort encompasses various improvements to the Livingston Avenue corridor from 18th Street to Nelson Road, including potentially reducing the number of travel lanes to increase safety for all users.
Given that a portion of the planned improvements will cross or be located in close proximity to existing railroad tracks currently operated by Norfolk Southern, it is necessary that certain services be performed either by the railroad or a consultant it designates in order to identify and mitigate potential conflicts between rail operations and public infrastructure in proximity to railway corridors. The purpose of this legislation is to authorize the execution of a preliminary engineering agreement between the Department of Public Service and Norfolk Southern, pursuant to which the latter will perform a thorough plan review.
2. CONTRACT COMPLIANCE
The contract compliance number for Norfolk Southern is CC009168.
3. FISCAL IMPACT
Funding in the amount of $25,000.00 is available for this project in the Streets and Highways Bond Fund, Fund 7704, within the Department of Public Service. An amendment to the 2025 Capital Improvement Budget and a transfer of cash are necessary to provide sufficient cash and budget authority for the requisite expenditure.
4. EMERGENCY DESIGNATION
Emergency action is requested to facilitate the completion of the required plan review by Norfolk Southern as soon as possible so as not to delay the design phase of the aforementioned project, which is projected to be comple...
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