AtkinsRéalis, Bird Construction JV enter alliance development agreement to deliver Metrolinx's East Harbour Transit Hub

AtkinsRéalis (SNC-Lavalin Group Inc.) and Bird Construction have partnered under an alliance development agreement with Metrolinx to deliver the East Harbour Transit Hub, a new interchange station that is part of a broader transit-oriented community plan for Toronto. AtkinsRéalis is partnered with Bird under the Rail Connect (RC) Partners joint venture.

The East Harbour Transit Hub, part of Toronto’s SmartTrack Stations Program, is one of the first major projects in Canada to be procured using an ‘alliance’ model. The alliance model has been used internationally to plan and deliver large, complex infrastructure programs, driving innovation and collaboration between parties. The alliance model is better equipped to manage risk with greater transparency and cooperative decision-making.

Under the alliance development agreement, services include optimizing the design solution, preparing detailed estimates for resources, costs and schedules, preparing a Project Proposal, finalizing the Project Alliance Agreement and performing Early Works.

"The alliance development agreement represents a significant development for us in how we execute large projects without a fixed price contract model; we are thrilled to work closely with our alliance partners to apply this collaborative model to deliver an exciting new regional transportation hub," said Ian L. Edwards, president and CEO, AtkinsRéalis. "We are proud to contribute to improving transportation links in the Greater Toronto Area and developing innovative solutions to improve accessibility for commuters."

The East Harbour Transit Hub will support local transit needs in the community and regional connectivity, through the incorporation of the GO Train, Ontario Line subway and future Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) light-rail transit. Service levels planned as part of GO Expansion would see a GO train arriving as frequently as every five minutes. 

"This significant award advances our strategic priority to grow our infrastructure portfolio while maintaining our disciplined pursuit of projects with appropriate risk profiles,” said Teri McKibbon, president and CEO of Bird. “We are proud to play a key role in this project, where we can leverage Bird’s extensive collaborative contracting experience along with our comprehensive self-perform capabilities, including the specialized services of Dagmar, acquired in 2021. We look forward to working collaboratively with Metrolinx and the other alliance team members and stakeholders to promote innovation, continuous improvement and productivity while delivering this critical infrastructure project required to meet the needs of future generations.”