What to Expect from Transit Construction in 2020

It will be a big year for transit openings in North America, with even more on the way in years to follow.

1 minute read

January 28, 2020, 12:00 PM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


BART Station Construction

Brandon5485 / Wikimedia Commons

"20 new transit lines will open in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico in 2020," according to Yonah Freemark and the 2020 update of the Transit Explorer database.

"These new transit lines won’t be adequate alone to counter the large-scale investment in highway construction that dominates most metropolitan regions," according to Freemark. "But they will significantly improve public transportation for thousands of riders in many large cities."

There's more on the way, adds Freemark. "About 60 more major transit projects will be under construction in 2020 and are expected to open by 2026. Some cities, like Montréal and Seattle, will essentially double the size of their urban rail systems during that time."

In the United States, "the largest investments by far are being completed in the Honolulu, Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area, and Washington regions," according to Freemark, who details those projects and the others opening in 2020 in the source article.

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