The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission on March 24 advertised the final segment of the San Joaquin Pipeline (SJPL) system upgrade program (contract 3, eastern segment, $75 million) with a pre-bid meeting and site tour scheduled for April 20.

Photo courtesy of the SFPUC

The SJPL is part of the SFPUC�s Water System Improvement Program (WSIP), a $4.6 billion bond-funded program that includes 86 projects to seismically upgrade and repair the aging regional water system in six Bay Area counties. The WSIP involves a broad range of projects varying in size and complexity covering all aspects of the water system � from dams, reservoirs, pipelines, and tunnels to treatment facilities, pump stations and water storage tanks. The existing system includes three large diameter pipelines that range in age from 42 to 78 years old.

About half of the projects in the WSIP are located within the city of San Francisco, and the other half, referred to as regional projects, span across the Central Valley, southern Alameda and Santa Clara counties, up the Peninsula and into San Francisco. The regional projects are organized geographically into five regions: San Joaquin, Sunol Valley, Bay Division, Peninsula and San Francisco.

The SJPS includes three large pipelines and one crossover facility that convey Hetch Hetchy water from the Foothill Tunnel near Oakdale on the east, 47.5 mi across the San Joaquin Valley to the Coast Range Tunnel on the west. The SFPUC says the delivery capacity of these pipelines has been reduced from their original capacity of 300 million gallons per day due to deteriorating linings.

Construction on the eastern segment will begin this summer, with completion set for summer 2013. The project includes a new 6.7-mi, 78-in. pipeline segment from Oakdale Portal to a new connection point downstream.

The $11.7-million contract 1 of the SJPL, named the Crossovers Project, was awarded to West Bay Builders, Novato. The project consists of pipeline crossover facilities near Emery Road (with 10 valves) and Pelican Road (with 12 valves). The project began last June and will be completed in November.

Mountain Cascade Inc., Livermore, was awarded contract 2 for the $70-million SJPL western segment project, which starts just west of the San Joaquin River in Stanislaus County, continuing along regional roads through the Tracy Golf Course to Chrisman Road in San Joaquin County. The project began March 11 and will take 18 months to complete, says the SFPUC.