The U.S. Department of Transportation and the state of Maryland are expected to sign a funding agreement next week for the Purple Line between Montgomery and Prince George's counties.
Robert McCartney and Faiz Siddiqui report: "Maryland’s Purple Line will receive a $900 million federal full funding agreement from the Trump administration, officials said Monday, a critical step forward for the oft-delayed project."
"Construction of the 16-mile light-rail line linking Montgomery and Prince George’s counties will begin within weeks after the deal is formalized," add McCartney and Siddiqui.
The decision to fund the project comes only a few months after a court decision seemed to have doomed the project to the dustbin of history, but the "announcement put to rest worries in Maryland that the Purple Line might fall victim to desires in the Trump administration and the Republican Party to trim federal transit spending."
As noted in the article, however, if the Trump Administration gets its way, this transit project could be the last to have a happy ending, because the "White House budget released in the spring proposed eliminating new federal grants for transit construction, and the GOP party platform urged phasing out all federal transit spending."
FULL STORY: Maryland to get $900-million federal full funding agreement for Purple Line
Maryland's Purple Line Gets the Green Light Again
The public-private partnership behind the Purple Line light rail project in Maryland fell apart in September, and has this past week been revived.
Purple Line Construction Halts in Maryland as Contractor Woes Deepen
Purple Line Transit Partners, the contractors managing construction of the beleaguered Purple Line in Maryland, have begun to walk off the job as a dispute about cost overruns brings the project to a screeching halt.
Biden: Masks, Not Vaccines, Are Best Defense in Near Term
President Joe Biden is calling on all Americans to wear masks for the next 100 days to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, issuing two executive orders that require wearing masks on federal property and in domestic and international travel.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Map: Where Senate Republicans Want to Sell Your Public Lands
For public land advocates, the Senate Republicans’ proposal to sell millions of acres of public land in the West is “the biggest fight of their careers.”
Restaurant Patios Were a Pandemic Win — Why Were They so Hard to Keep?
Social distancing requirements and changes in travel patterns prompted cities to pilot new uses for street and sidewalk space. Then it got complicated.
Platform Pilsner: Vancouver Transit Agency Releases... a Beer?
TransLink will receive a portion of every sale of the four-pack.
Toronto Weighs Cheaper Transit, Parking Hikes for Major Events
Special event rates would take effect during large festivals, sports games and concerts to ‘discourage driving, manage congestion and free up space for transit.”
Berlin to Consider Car-Free Zone Larger Than Manhattan
The area bound by the 22-mile Ringbahn would still allow 12 uses of a private automobile per year per person, and several other exemptions.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)