Contracts for two Metronet projects – the Bayswater station upgrade and Denny Avenue level crossing removal in Kelmscott – will be awarded by Christmas, Public Transport Authority executives said at an industry briefing last week.

A Request for Proposal (RFP) for the Bayswater project will be released this month while the Denny Avenue Request for Tender (RFT) will be released mid-year, with executives revealing details of the tender processes and scopes to more than 200 contractors.

Bayswater will be awarded under a competitive alliance, while Denny Avenue will be released for tender as two separate design and construct (D&C) packages, one for rail and one for road and civic works.

The three jobs will be awarded by Christmas and together are worth $215 million and are part of the State Government’s multi-billion-dollar public transport renewal program.

PTA Executive Director Major Projects Ross Hamilton told contractors that both projects were complex and challenging because they involved existing rail and road networks and the identification and protection of existing services.

He said Denny Avenue works, which are just north of Kelmscott railway station, needed to be carefully planned to minimise impacts to passenger services on the Armadale line, the Australind services and the large amounts of traffic and pedestrians that use the area.

The grade separated railway line and related infrastructure will be raised 2.5m and will require the construction of a single span bridge and significant retaining walls between Denny Avenue and Davis Road.

PTA Principal Project Director Kevin Guppy said Bayswater contractors must have bridge building capabilities as the project required an extensive bridge with the new station to be built on the bridge.

Forward works, which will be awarded as a D&C, would include carpark construction at adjacent stations, construction of cable routes, and relocation of PTA and third-party services.

Two preferred proponents would be selected as part of the alliance development stage of the project, with both being offered a payment, he said.

“There will be a payment to each proponent and I know that’s a big concern of industry and we are having lots of discussion about the extent of that payment. We are continuing to discuss that across government,” he said

The successful proponent would then enter into a project alliance agreement with the PTA.

Guppy said two Denny Avenue required a different procurement strategy as each component required different skills and needed to be completed in different timeframes to minimise disruption.

“One has to be done before the other. We have to move the railway line before we put the road under it,” he said.

He said contractors were required to have bridge and road pre-qualifications.

Guppy said the request for tender would be preleased in the middle of this year, with contracts to be awarded before Christmas. The rail component will be awarded first and the road component a month later.

The RFP for Bayswater closes mid-year, while the RFT for Denny Avenue closes mid-late year.

► The full version of this story first appeared in WA Works, the number one source of WA supply chain and major project news.