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Woojin selected as preferred bidder for railway project in LA County

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By Jhoo Dong-chan
  • Published KST
  • Updated KST
A perspective image of Inglewood's ITC station/ Courtesy of Woojin Industrial Systems

A perspective image of Inglewood's ITC station/ Courtesy of Woojin Industrial Systems

Woojin Industrial Systems has been selected as a preferred bidder for the Inglewood Transit Connector project in Los Angeles County, California.

According to the Korean rolling stock maker, Tuesday, the City of Inglewood announced last month that the Elevate Inglewood Partners (EIP) consortium was chosen as the city's "Best Value Proposal." Woojin is part of the EIP consortium along with five partners including Tutor Perini, one of the United States' largest constructors.

The project involves the design, construction and 30-year operation as well as management of a 2.6-kilometer route connecting the Los Angeles Metro K Line to Inglewood.

Connecting the city's major cultural and sports attractions, including the Kia Forum, SoFi Stadium, YouTube Theater and Intuit Dome, the project is expected to be a major driving force in revitalizing Inglewood's historic downtown area, supporting public transportation-oriented regional development and enhancing local housing and commercial areas, the City of Inglewood added in the press release.

The total project cost is estimated to be worth around 2.7 trillion won ($2 billion). Of that, Woojin's order is expected to be around $300 million.

Woojin added that the design and construction for the project are scheduled to start early next year. It is expected to start delivering vehicles in 2028.

The company also expects to secure more than 10 billion won annually over the next 30 years by participating in the project's 30-year maintenance.

With a population of about 100,000, Inglewood is a gateway city in the South Bay region near Los Angeles International Airport.

Woojin introduced Korea's first rubber-tire unmanned light rail system. The system is currently in operation for Busan Metro Line 4, Seoul Sillim Line and the Incheon International Airport Shuttle Train. It also supplied the system to the Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Indonesia.