With colossal contracts coming up, five big transportation contractors to watch

Early this year the Cuomo administration boasted of a public infrastructure plan that was so sweeping it would exceed $100 billion. That total, which includes substantial funding from the federal government, local governments and semi-independent authorities in addition to state dollars, has fluctuated somewhat since then. Capital investment for the state Department of Transportation will be higher than initially proposed, for example, while the bulk of a promised $20 billion for a state housing plan is up in the air.

But the sum is still useful as a rough estimate of upcoming state infrastructure spending, with such major transportation projects as the trans-Hudson Gateway rail tunnel andan expanded Penn Station in the planning stages and a new Tappan Zee Bridge, the Second Avenue Subway and an overhauled LaGuardia Airportall underway.

So, who will cash in over the next few years? If history is any guide, a number of big players could be in line to secure some top-dollar transportation infrastructure contracts. Of course, it’ll all depend on how the bidding processes go – but in the meantime, here are five big contractors to watch.

AECOM

AECOM, a Los Angeles-based design firm, has played a role in a number of major New York transportation projects: the new Tappan Zee Bridge, a redevelopment project at JFK International Airport, the East Side Access project connecting the Long Island Rail Road to Grand Central Terminal and a handful of bus rapid transit projects in New York City.

Perhaps its most notable role, however, is as the prime engineering and design consultant for the Second Avenue Subway, whose first phase is scheduled to open in December. The MTA, which won additional funding for the project in this year’s state budget, is already gearing up for Phase 2.

The firm, which works on dozens of international projects, significantly expanded its New York footprint in 2010 when it acquired Tishman Construction Corp.

2015 revenue: $17.99 billion

2015 profit: $535.19 million

FLUOR

The Texas-based construction company heads up Tappan Zee Constructors, a consortium that is building the $3.9 billion replacement for the aging Tappan Zee Bridge.

In January of 2013, the New York State Thruway Authority awarded the contract for the project, the largest of its kind in state history. It is scheduled be completed by 2018, and its use of design-build as a project delivery vehicle could help it meet that deadline.

The firm, which works on projects around the globe, also led the construction of the Port Authority’s $3.2 billion World Trade Center transportation hub and was project manager for the $1.4 billion International Arrivals Terminal at JFK Airport.

2015 revenue: $18.11 billion

2015 profit: $412.51 million

KIEWIT

This construction and engineering company, which is headquartered in Omaha, does work all across the United States as well as in Canada. In New York, its biggest transportation infrastructure jobs are on two Port Authority structures: the Goethals Bridge and the Bayonne Bridge.

In 2013, Kiewit and a partner won a $1.5 billion design-build contract to replace the Goethals Bridge, which connects Staten Island to New Jersey. The same year, Kiewit and Skanska began a $1.3 billion project to raise the Bayonne Bridge, which also connects New Jersey to Staten Island, to allow larger ships to pass under it.

The company has also worked on several other structures in New York, including a $644 million contract to replace New York City’s Willis Avenue Bridge.

2015 revenue: Nearly $10 billion, according to the company

2015 profit: Not disclosed

SKANSKA

Sweden-based Skanska AB specializes in commercial, residential and transportation infrastructure projects in the United States and Europe. It has an extensive presence in New York, where it built the Oculus structure at the new World Trade Center Transportation Hub and has done rehabilitation work on the Times Square subway station, the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, and the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg, Triborough and Bayonne bridges.

Its two most notable projects in New York, however, are the Second Avenue Subway and the upcoming overhaul of LaGuardia Airport. Along with J.F. Shea Construction Inc. and Schiavone Construction Co., Skanska won a $337 million contract to complete the first phase of the Second Avenue Subway, which is set to open this year. Skanska has won several additional contracts on the project as well.

More recently, as part of the LaGuardia Gateway Partners consortium, Skanska will spearhead the $4 billion effort to rebuild and connect the outdated terminals at the Queens airport. And looking ahead, the company is also in the running to win a bid to expand Penn Station, another major Cuomo initiative.

2015 revenue: $153.05 billion

2015 profit: $4.78 billion

TUTOR PERINI

Tutor Perini Corporation, which is based in California, recently won several contracts to complete the East Side Access project, which will connect the Long Island Rail Road directly to Grand Central Terminal. In January, the MTA awarded a $663 million contract for tunneling, as well as a $79 million contract to upgrade railroad infrastructure in Sunnyside, Queens.

The company, which also specializes in commercial buildings, also won a major contract to construct two buildings at the Hudson Yards development in Manhattan.

2015 revenue: $4.92 billion

2015 profit: $45.29 million

Article images courtesy of MTA, New York State Thruway Authority, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and Office of the Governor.