[LMich]

Feds grant $25M for downtown light rail

Tom Greenwood / The Detroit News

January 21 2011

Federal officials on Thursday announced a grant agreement has been signed for $25 million toward a proposed light rail project in downtown Detroit.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced the deal was signed by the Federal Transit Administration, city of Detroit and Michigan Department of Transportation for the first phase of the M-1 rail, a 3.4-mile, 12-station line from Hart Plaza to the New Center area.

The $25 million, which was applied for in 2010, comes from a $1.5 billion fund under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and is known as TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) funds.

The funds are to be used for road rehabilitation, landscaping and the purchase of light rail cars for the project.

...

Proponents of the system plan to break ground in late 2011 once the findings of an environmental impact study are complete this spring.

Both public and private funds would be used to pay for the $450 million trolley-type system, which in total would run 9.3 miles from Hart Plaza to Eight Mile.

...

The cash-strapped city received a major break last year when U.S. Rep. Carolyn Cheeks-Kilpatrick added an amendment to the 2010 federal transportation bill that would allow Detroit to use the $125 million in private funds as its 20 percent portion of the project.

"That really made the federal government take notice," said M-1 Rail CEO Matt Cullen, who credited Mayor Dave Bing for his strong leadership for the project.

...

Hoeffner said the impact study should be submitted by spring, approved sometime this summer and the signing of construction contracts by Sept. 30.

Initial stops on the system include: Michigan State Fairgrounds at Eight Mile, Seven Mile, McNichols, Manchester, Glendale, Calvert and Hazelwood/Holbrook.

More include: Grand Boulevard, Piquette, Warren, Mack, Foxtown and Hart Plaza.

http://www.detnews.com/article/20110...own-light-rail