m-1 rail

M-1 Rail Project to get $25 million in federal support

Mark Brush — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:36:14 +0000

Update 11:36 a.m.

At the press conference this morning, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the M-1 Rail project can go forward using a $25 million TIGER grant (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery).

The money will help support the construction of the $137 million streetcar project.

The 3.3 mile streetcar line is planned to travel from Midtown Detroit to New Center. It's planned to have 11 stations, with connections to Campus Martius, Comerica Park, the Detroit Medical Center area, and Wayne State University.

LaHood also announced an additional $6.5 million in funding to help develop a "bus rapid transit network" to help connect other destinations around Detroit to the transportation network.

In a statement, LaHood said the state's passage of a law authorizing a regional transit authority for southeast Michigan will "will improve access to jobs, education, medical care, and other destinations for residents in the Detroit metro area."

“The Obama Administration is committed to the creation of a modern transportation system that will create jobs Detroit needs right now, while spurring new economic development to help this region grow stronger in the years to come,” said LaHood.

9:20 a.m.

The U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is in Detroit this morning to announce $25 million in funding for the city's M-1 rail line.

David Shepardson of the Detroit News reports the M-1 rail money was expected, but federal money for "a system of rapid buses will receive less than initially forecast."

LaHood — who will make the formal announcement at 9:30 a.m. Friday at Wayne State University with Gov. Rick Snyder and Mayor Dave Bing — told congressional offices Friday morning the news.
The funds will support construction of a planned 3.3-mile streetcar line that will cost $137 million.
LaHood also said that $6.5 million in Federal Transit Administration planning funds will help Michigan develop a bus rapid transit network to expand transit options, connecting downtown Detroit with its suburbs and key destinations in the region.

M-1 supporters say construction of the rail project could begin this year.

Michigan Radio's Sarah Cwiek is covering the press conference.

U.S. transit chief in Detroit Friday on big project

The Associated Press — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 17:59:32 +0000

DETROIT (AP) - U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is coming to Detroit on Friday to make "a major funding announcement" that is expected to involve plans for a light rail system between the city's downtown and the cultural, medical and educational center a few miles north.

LaHood's office said in a statement Wednesday that Mayor Dave Bing, U.S. Senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow and others will be at Wayne State University to reveal details of a plan "that will significantly expand transit options in downtown Detroit."

The U.S. Transportation Department didn't reveal details, but LaHood has been in talks for months with city, regional and state officials on their part of a deal to create a 3.3-mile light rail line that's expected to cost $137 million.

Feds to inject $25 million into Detroit light rail project

Mark Brush — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 16:03:14 +0000

You can say one thing about the backers of the M-1 light rail project in Detroit, they're persistent.

The on-again, off-again federal funding of the project is now on-again, according to reports from the Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News.

The Freep reports U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is expected to visit Detroit next week with $25 million for the light rail project along 3.3 miles of Woodward Avenue.

The rail line is proposed between downtown Detroit and New Center.

New hope for federal funding for proposed light rail line in Detroit

Steve Carmody — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 19:59:59 +0000

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood met with Michigan officials today to discuss the development of a regional transit authority to oversee a light rail line in Detroit.

It's official: no federal money for Detroit light rail--again

Sarah Cwiek — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 22:22:12 +0000

A proposed light rail project on Detroit’s Woodward Avenue won’t be getting millions in federal transit dollars—for now.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood awarded the so-called M-1 project a $25 million TIGER grant in 2010. But late last year, LaHood, Governor Snyder, and Detroit Mayor Dave Bing decided that money would be better spent on a regional rapid bus system.

Since then, M-1’s private backers—who have pledged millions toward the 3.4-mile span connecting downtown Detroit and the New Center area—have rallied to re-gain government support for the project.