Parsons wins major rail contract

4089 Parsons has been selected by the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (PCJPB), which owns and operates Caltrain (the commuter rail line between San Francisco and San Mateo and Santa Clara counties), for design and installation of its $138 million interoperable communications-based overlay signal system positive train control (CBOSS PTC). This contract includes compliance with Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) requirements meeting the mandates of the Railroad Safety Improvement Act of 2008, as well as creating functions that will improve performance of Caltrain passenger operations.

Under the four-year contract, Parsons will design, install, test, integrate, document, commission, and provide warranty services to PCJPB, enabling Caltrain to place CBOSS PTC into revenue service by October 2015.

When completed, Caltrain’s CBOSS PTC will include the capability to prevent train-to-train collisions, excessive speeds, incursions into established work zone limits, and movement through misaligned switches. Parsons will ensure that the CBOSS PTC for Caltrain will be interoperable with the PTC systems implemented by Caltrain tenant railroads:  Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR), Capitol Corridor, Altamont Commuter Express, and 2008 Amtrak, providing seamless operation of trains moving between Caltrain and UPRR-controlled territory.