North America

We remain a true multisector, multidisciplinary company

Our strong performance in 2023 is a result of leveraging our strategic capabilities across North America, being focused on our growth strategy, and the contributions of our exceptional talent.

In 2023 we streamlined and focused our technical practices and business units and made several new leadership appointments. These changes equip us to better serve our clients, drive forward our growth strategy, and create clearer development paths for our people, strengthening our succession pipeline.

As we grow in North America, we are taking more significant roles on the continent’s largest and most demanding projects.

Transit and underground infrastructure

We excel in delivering major transit projects, particularly when they involve complex underground infrastructure.

Drawing on a tunnelling heritage going back to the early 20th century, we are responsible for industry-changing developments in technology and practice. In January, Long Island Rail Road’s East Side Access project was completed, alleviating congestion and offering easier access to Manhattan. As tunnel consultant to the programme management team, we provided essential tunnelling expertise, including design review and advice on tunnel design and construction.

Meanwhile in Virginia we are delivering two large, technically challenging and iconic projects with complex ground conditions – the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel Expansion and the Parallel Thimble Shoal Tunnel.

We also continue to advance our capabilities in transit across North America. LA Metro celebrated completion of the highly complex Los Angeles Regional Connector in 2023. It offers a seamless alternative transportation option to LA’s congested roadways, providing significant environmental benefits, economic development and employment opportunities throughout Los Angeles county.

The East Side Access project will allow commuters from Queens and Long Island to shorten their commutes by 30 to 40 minutes a day. Car travel will be reduced by an estimated 500,000 miles per day, reducing air pollution and the emission of greenhouse gases.

The Regional Connector is one of our growing portfolio of design-build contracts: clients are looking to place project related risks with those best equipped to handle them – contractors and their designers. And contractors are looking to optimise performance against schedule, cost, safety, environmental and quality indicators. We are working with clients and contractors to improve the design-build delivery model, to achieve the best outcomes for all.

The $12bn Bay Area Rapid Transit Silicon Valley Phase II project moved into construction phase in 2023. It is the world’s largest single bore metro tunnel. We developed the reference design for Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) and will serve as owner’s engineer for the main tunnel contract, and engineer of record for the stations, systems and yard contract packages.

Delivering projects using the design-build model is also an important part of our portfolio in Canada. Our engineers designed Toronto’s first subway line more than 50 years ago, and we have been involved in nearly every expansion since. Right now we have a multidisciplinary role on Toronto’s largest and most complex transport project ever, the Ontario Line, which is being delivered under a combination of two large public-private partnerships and five progressive design-build contracts for Infrastructure Ontario/Metrolinx (investor and system owner/operator). The project involves multiple tunnelling techniques.

38,000 people will benefit from the Scarborough Subway Extension in Toronto

Also in Toronto, we are prime designer for stations, rail and systems on the 7.8km, CA$5.5bn (£3.4bn) Scarborough Subway Extension, which will provide improved access to transit for 38,000 people. Our client is design-build contractor Scarborough Transit Connect (Aecon and FCC Canada), for Infrastructure Ontario/Metrolinx. One of our strengths as design lead has been to assemble a team of the world’s most respected architects, planners and specialists.

Hydrogen revolution

America’s first hydrogen fuel cell/battery hybrid train will begin operation in 2024, on San Bernardino County Transportation Authority’s Redlands line. Appointed by SBCTA in 2019, we secured funding, developed the specification and subsequently oversaw procurement and design of the vehicles. Throughout 2023 we supervised manufacturing and testing, and designed stabling and maintenance facilities for the zero emissions multiple unit – ZEMU. Knowledge gained is now being deployed to develop similar ZEMU projects in other countries.

In 2023 IOWN Renewable Energy, on behalf of Eolus North America, appointed us to carry out a feasibility study and to develop concept design for Wind Wall 2, a proposed hybrid solar and wind energy to hydrogen project near Tehachapi, California. Green hydrogen would potentially be supplied for transportation and to industries requiring high quality thermal energy such as cement production.

Energy security

Last year saw completion of South Fork Wind, New York – a 132MW offshore wind farm capable of supplying 70,000 homes. Local communities were concerned about the project’s environmental impact, including how the high voltage transmission line would make landfall. We completed the preliminary design of an 830m long tunnel using horizontal directional drilling to minimise onshore impact. We also developed a 3D model to confirm site viability and safety, and then advanced the model to a 4D simulation (adding the construction duration) to mitigate construction challenges.

The White Pine pumped hydro storage project will provide 8000MWh of energy storage to generate up to eight hours of electricity and create about 500 jobs during construction.

Energy storage is a critical part of effective networks in the energy transition. We are acting as owner’s engineer for client rPlus Energies on the 1GW White Pine pumped hydro storage project in Nevada. It includes two reservoirs, underground tunnels, shafts and caverns, and a new 25 mile (40km), 345kV transmission line. Following a detailed feasibility study and preliminary design, we supported rPlus to submit the final licence application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in early 2023. Construction is expected to begin in 2025.

Clean water

Denver Water retained us to continue its programme of replacing lead service pipelines. Over our first three years of design and management, we assisted the utility provider in replacing more than 15,000 lead service lines, directly benefiting public health. The number of annual replacements is being increased from just under 5000 to 8000.

For more than a decade we have been working for New Jersey American Water on projects to remove per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) – termed ‘forever chemicals’ – from drinking water supplies. PFAS contamination is a fast rising global health challenge. We are well positioned to help clients comply with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed new regulations to protect public health and environmental justice. In 2023 a PFAS treatment facility we designed for American Water Operations and Maintenance at Camden, New Jersey, entered operation.

In Philadelphia, construction of a major flood relief and combined sewer improvement programme is nearing completion. We’ve designed four of the six phases of the Cohocksink Flood Mitigation project, which will benefit neighbourhoods prone to inundation and ultimately reduce sewage outflow into the Delaware River, improving public health and the environment.

Transit oriented development

Our buildings practice continues to consolidate and grow our capabilities in designing and delivering stations, terminals and transit oriented development. The practice complements our core expertise in transport infrastructure and systems engineering and can draw on our award winning buildings teams in other parts of our global company.

In 2023 we were appointed by Caltrain in California to develop the business case for Diridon Station in San Jose – a ‘Grand Central Station’ for the West Coast. In Toronto, we have been advising on station design and over-station construction/transit oriented development as part of our much wider remit on the Ontario Line. And in New Westminster, British Columbia, we led scoping and front-end project preparation for a major commercial and residential development at Columbia Station.

Shared experience and insight

We continue to adopt a highly integrated and collaborative regional approach, leveraging the breadth of our capabilities across North America. Supported by our expertise around the world, we’re able to offer clients industry leading technical depth and experience across rail, transit, tunnels and underground infrastructure, energy and water. Internal mobility, a truly collaborative culture focused on excellence and innovation, and the opportunity to work on large, complex projects will help us attract the best people in the industry.