Comments on: New South Ferry station springs a leak

By: Nathanael

Nathanael — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 12:06:53 +0000

That NYS law about contracting is quite a problem, isn’t it?

No way to disqualify the crooks.

By: Nathanael

Nathanael — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 12:05:27 +0000

Whether or not concrete ties are cheaper to maintain than wood ties actually depends on climate, but in most climates they are cheaper. I’m trying to remember which climate is the other way ’round, it’s one which is really easy on wood and really really hard on concrete. Was it salt marshes?….

By: At capital construction, is it bloat or not enough resources? :: Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:28:03 +0000

[...] The South Ferry Terminal opened 14 months late and with engineering difficulties that continue to this very day. The smooth sailing that Kalikow predicted in 2003 hasn’t come to [...]

By: petey

petey — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:29:19 +0000

“The connection between the #6 train and the E/V at 53rd Street has had water problems since the day it opened”
and you beat me to it. right now, at the point where the connector opens onto the 6 platform is a big, persistent drip that is being sopped up by stacks of freebie morning papers. yes, it’s pathetic.

By: Peter

Peter — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:57:06 +0000

I think the words "pathetic" and "typical" are apt. The connection between the #6 train and the E/V at 53rd Street has had water problems since the day it opened and though I haven't been by there in a while, I think the escalator worked for 3 days before it broke. I took pics of a staircase closed for repair at the newly opened Cortland Street station . Broken not 2 months after opening, and five years of construction. A staircase. Pathetic. Typical.

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 02:37:02 +0000

These aren’t real ties. The rails are laid on concrete slab, without cross-ties as with conventional ballasted rail. Even in the older tunnels, the rails are laid on slab, but they’re fastened to it with wooden ties instead of concrete.

The reason this is used is that ballast needs to be deep to provide enough stability. On surface rail it’s much cheaper to build than slab track, but in a tunnel, slab track reduces the amount of excavation necessary, which reduces costs. Slab track is also easier to maintain and stabler.

While high-speed rail has to have concrete ties, either with or without ballast, it’s common to build low-speed rail with concrete ties as well outside North America. As with slab track construction, concrete ties are more expensive to build but cheaper to maintain.

By: Josh K

Josh K — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 23:11:01 +0000

First off, water-proofing is really, really, hard. My mentor, a licensed PE in NY with decades of experience, has resigned himself to the fact that water will always find a way in; and this is medium voltage (<15kV) power distribution manholes we were designing.

Design-Build isn't allowed for large public projects in NY state. Large publicly funded construction projects must use lowest bidder. It's really stupid, but the really scummy contractors pour tons of money into Albany to keep it that way.

So instead of qualifying to bid, these folks bid to qualify. It sucks and it drives agency in house design teams insane. At least once a week, I'd engage in a 10 minute "venting" session with a co-worker.

By: Redbird

Redbird — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:25:46 +0000

Design-build is not just a scheduling tool. It is, as other posters have mentioned, a contract delivery method in which one entity is responsible for design and construction of a facility. In most cases a contractor hires a designer onto their team to undertake the design. This process is often used to put design risk onto the contractor–as the contractor and designer must now coordinate internally–and to allow fast-track construction (some construction can begin for all design work complete). However, you run the risk of the contractor “leaning” on the designer to do get things done quickly and more cost effectively.

Also, on all public work jobs there are independent inspectors (whose companies bill public agencies on an hourly basis–often upwards of $50-100 an hour) for full-time inspection services so there should have been an additional set of eyes.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:08:53 +0000

People are starting to prefer them because they last longer, are more stable, and don’t require as much maintenance. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen them used by a subway before, though. Los Angeles, to my memory, doesn’t use ties at all on the subway/LRT lines, the rails are secured to the track bed by parallel concrete “beams,” but that could be a seismic thing for all I know.

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:08:49 +0000

They have been using concrete ties for the last 7-8 years. They are all over the system now most notable along the A line in the Rockaways.