The Western Council of Construction Consumers, an owners' group, awarded its Owner's Project Excellence Award for Exceptional Achievement to the Orange Line Extension, a design-build project designed by Willdan Engineering for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro).

In spite of complexities in the design and process, which required approvals from six separate agencies at each of five design phases to be delivered ahead of ongoing construction, the $98-million project was completed on time and under budget, resulting in significantly improved public transportation times and access throughout L.A. County.

Metro extended the Orange Line dedicated bus way an additional four miles north to connect to the Chatsworth Amtrak/Metrolink station.

The project included raised landscaped medians, an irrigation system, ADA access curb ramps, dedicated paths for pedestrians and bicycles, park-and-ride and parking lot facilities, traffic signal modifications, communication conduits, and signing and striping. Four new bus stations were constructed at Sherman Way, Roscoe Boulevard, Nordhoff Street, and the Chatsworth Amtrak/Metrolink Station, along with two bridge replacements over LACDPW flood control facilities, and over 4,000 feet of MSE walls.