Central Corridor LRT construction will accelerate this summer

Major public improvement projects usually have several near-death experiences, and the Central Corridor light-rail transit (LRT) project is certainly no exception.

Nonetheless, the Metropolitan Council and our project partners have succeeded in keeping the project on track and within budget – now $957 million. 

In May, the project achieved another important milestone when the Federal Transit Administration granted permission to enter final design. This is the last step before obtaining a Full Funding Grant Agreement that commits the federal government to paying 50 percent of the project’s capital costs, which we hope to receive by year’s end.

While securing this funding commitment is taking longer than we had hoped, the Council and our partners are not allowing this construction season to go to waste. We are using state and local funds to start work, with the promise that the feds will reimburse us for half of these costs once the Full Funding Grant Agreement is approved.

If you’ve visited downtown St. Paul, you undoubtedly have observed the massive utility relocation work being done to make way for the construction of the rail line on Fourth Street.

Before the end of the year, we also will:

• Complete roadway improvements in the University of Minnesota campus area to accommodate traffic next year. That when Washington Avenue will be closed to cars and trucks, and converted to a transit-pedestrian mall serving LRT and buses.
• Start rail construction east of the State Capitol on Robert and 12th Streets, north of Interstate 94.
• Begin work to retrofit the Washington Avenue bridge to accommodate light-rail vehicles and start work on the segment of tracks connecting Central Corridor LRT to the Hiawatha line near the Metrodome.

At this point, I am pleased to say we remain on track to complete construction and start passenger service in 2014. When Central opens, we’ll have 115 miles of bus and rail transitways that will provide a fast, safe, convenient alternative to driving alone in rush-hour traffic.

Peter Bell

June 2010