Six tunnel segments on a single light rail extension project offered plenty of opportunity for Sound Transit to run amiss of target dates, costs and plans.
Monday, August 8, was supposed to have been a day of celebration for Maryland’s Purple Line, as state transportation officials and the Federal Transit Administration would officially ink an agreement for a $900 million New Starts grant for the new $5.6 billion light rail system across Washington, D.C.’s northern suburbs.
Maryland transportation officials have chosen a private consortium to design, build, operate, maintain and partially finance the 16.2-mile Purple Line light-rail line across the northern Washington, D.C., suburbs.
Notable news items include the President budgeting $600 million for projects in Washington and Oregon, progress on Amazon’s new Seattle campus, Alaska’s construction spending outlook, and more.
There is one bright spot in the December “termination for convenience” of the main contracting joint venture on the Boston area’s Green Line Extension light-rail project: No one is pointing fingers at the contractor as the key culprit behind the project’s soaring cost, which currently is $700 million to $1 billion over its roughly $2-billion budget.
Notable news items include Sundt Construction’s recent Military Friendly Employer designation, a new road-widening project in Clark County, and a minimum-wage lawsuit in Nevada.
Nigeria moved closer to implementing major infrastructure projects with a $600-million loan, which will fund a light-rail line in the capital, Abuja, as well as a government internet-connectivity project, and a $500-million loan, which will finance the construction of five airport terminals.
