The Los Angeles Times covers the ongoing story of delays to the opening of the Expo Line, the downtown to Santa Monica line that was supposed to see its first leg-- Los Angeles to Culver City--open next summer. With costs rising from $640 million to $862 million, the new goal is just to get to Crenshaw Boulevard by next year. As far as why the line is behind schedule and over budget, the Times points to factors as construction problems around the Blue Line in downtown, the addition of a USC stop, and changes to the Culver City stop. And there's the always reliable in-fighting and finger-pointing among agencies. Via the paper: "The [Exposition Metro Line Construction Authority], which is building the line, receives its money through the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and has contracted with a group of construction firms to perform the work. The firms and the construction authority are at odds over which is responsible for some of the project's delays. Depending on how that dispute is resolved, it could further raise the project's cost, officials said." According to the paper, the MTA doesn't know how they'll pay for the line if additional costs are needed (and it sounds like they will be), and "whether those costs would eat into money slated for other projects, which include a subway along Wilshire Boulevard and an extension of the Gold Line east into the San Gabriel Valley." According to the paper, the new projected opening for the Culver City stop is now end of 2011 or early 2012. Expo Line looking east on Exposition Blvd via Metro Library
· Expo Line project costs and delays are ballooning [LA Times]
· Just How Delayed Will Expo Line Be? [Curbed LA]
Filed under:
Loading comments...