The Purple Line jumped one more administrative hurdle on Friday, winning approval from federal authorities to start preliminary engineering of the proposed light rail line that will run through Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.
“Today’s federal approval affirms the benefits and feasibility of this project,” Md. Gov. Martin O’Malley said in a written statement. “Together, with our federal partners, we can secure the future of transit in Maryland and continue to move the Purple Line forward.”
Purple Line advocates also welcomed the news after decades of pushing for the line. “We are excited with the news that the Purple Line has cleared this key hurdle,” Action Committee for Transit president Tina Slater said in a statement. “I am thrilled beyond belief. In my mind’s eye, I can already look down the street from my front porch and see the train go by.”
The governor’s office said the project could start as soon as 2015 and be finished by 2020.
But the line still has many steps ahead of it – including the biggest challenge of getting the projected $1.925 billion needed to build it.
The state has applied for federal funds to help with the project.
The 16-mile line would run east-west between the Bethesda and New Carrollton Metro stations and have 21 stops, connecting riders to Metro stations and communities. It is projected to handle 60,000 riders a day by 2030.
