The Federal Transit Administration has given its approval for a fourth light rail transit line to move ahead, which would serve Minnesota’s Twin Cities. The approval adds to a busy LRT year for the region.
Opponents continue to snipe at the proposed Southwest Corridor Light Rail Project, sought by the Metropolitan Council as the third LRT line to serve Minneapolis/St. Paul and surrounding municipalities.
Light rail transit plans got the backing of officials in Durham and Orange counties, N.C., on Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2014, setting the stage for a concerted effort to secure federal funding for a regional LRT system covering the central core of the Tar Heel State’s famed Research Triangle (officially the Raleigh–Durham–Chapel Hill Combined Statistical Area).
By a 4-to-0 vote, the Santa Ana, Calif., City Council has chosen a proposed 4.1-mile streetcar route along the city’s Fourth Street as a preferred option over a route along Fifth Street, citing existing foot traffic as a factor.
The Seattle City Council on Monday, July 21, 2014, approved a First Avenue streetcar alignment that will seam together operations, the existing South Lake Union Streetcar and the similarly named First Hill streetcar, where construction has been nearly completed prior to the line’s opening later this year.
Metra, Chicagoland’s regional passenger rail service provider, says it is just more than halfway through a $115 million program to overhaul a total of 176 rail cars (79 cab cars and 97 trailer cars) originally built by Amerail between 1995 and 1998.
The Fort Worth Transportation Authority (The T) says the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the TEX Rail project is now available for public review.
The Federal Transit Administration is expressing support for streetcar implementation linking West Sacramento, Calif., with Sacremento, according to West Sacramento Mayor Chris Cabaldon.
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) officials have suggested for months that a light rail transit link to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, a high priority, might open ahead of schedule. DART now vows to make that happen.
Maryland’s contentious Purple Line light rail transit project got a supportive boost Thursday, March 20, 2014, with the Federal Transit Administration issuing its Record of Decision essentially approving the 16-mile line.