Light Rail

In a stunning blow to Mayor Rob Ford -- who, on his first day in office in 2010 scrubbed the "Transit City" plan in favor of an ill-thought out and unfunded subway scheme -- the Toronto City Council has quashed his plans and resurrected the old one.

Just three weeks after the city announced it was cancelling plans for a 9.3-mile light rail line, a truncated version may be built, but with some key caveats.

After decades of planning, a 20-mile light rail line in Honolulu is set to begin construction this March, despite persistent concerns over the project's cost.

The city and federal DOT have decided against a $600 million plan that would introduce light rail and, subsequently, more residents to the city. Instead, money will go to improving a notoriously unreliable bus system.

Joel Epstein says it was "nothing short of a miracle" that Jerusalem's Red Line light rail opened this year.

The 2010 Census reveals that Detroit's population is approaching the 1910's level. Of the City's 714,000 residents, 83% are black and nearly 40% live in poverty. With virtually every statistic going against its favor, can Motown make a comeback?

An expansion of Dublin's light rail system (DART) has been put on hold by Ireland's Transport Minister, who is ditching the idea in favor of a bus rapid transit system.

Arguing against a regional transportation tax, the Georgia Tea Party says that we shouldn't build any more light rail because terrorists might see it as an attractive target.

Voters in the Atlanta region will vote on a 1-cent sales tax for new transit projects. But one major county could stand in the way if its own project is not included.

Detroit's Oakland County suburbs are pushing to extend a light rail extension into their neighborhoods with such fervor that they may accomplish what the political system couldn't, says reporter Matt Helms.

New TRAX light rail lines in Salt Lake City opened a year early and 20% under budget.

The weekend closure of the 405 freeway in L.A. highlights the city's limited mobility but also the skewed way transit and transportation projects are debated.

Rail projects throughout the U.S. are hard hit by the downturn in the economy. The agencies behind them are trying to find ways to keep the projects from falling apart.

The City of Detroit has finalized the route of a planned light rail line traveling down one the of the city's main corridors and linking to downtown.

Bus rapid transit has seen a recent spike in interest, and with that interest has come the analysis that BRT takes away from light rail projects and vice versa. But as this post points out, they need each other and work better when both are around.

A new budget proposal in North Carolina could pull all funding for a long-planned extension of Charlotte's light rail system.

Planners in Victoria, British Columbia, are proposing a new light rail line for the city. Despite its $1 billion price tag, the transit line is expected to see wide support.

Enjoy this detailed demonstration of Detroit's Light Rail Proposal, using rap and LEGOs to communicate the message that light rail in the center of the road is better than then on the sides.

A rapid transit system gets closer to reality in Honolulu as officials conduct groundbreaking ceremony, while some still object to the project for aesthetic reasons.

Ground has broken on Honolulu's long-planned rail system, but locals still worry that the new transit won't lure new development to town.