Administrator
Posted 06 March 2019 - 10:10 AM
WTOP radio 3/5/19:
Purple Line lawsuit dismissed after years of legal battles
The Purple Line may have finally cleared years of legal hurdles, after a federal judge Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit that had aimed to halt construction.
U.S. District Judge Richard Leon found the plaintiffs in the case did not have standing to sue.
“Unfortunately for the plaintiffs, this second attempt to stop the Purple Line fares no better than their first,” Leon wrote.
The decision can be appealed though.
Board Leader
Posted 07 March 2019 - 11:56 AM
Reuters, 3/7/19:
Light rail project in D.C. suburbs survives new challenge by trail users
A federal judge in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday rebuffed a conservation group’s second attempt to derail Maryland’s Purple Line, a $5.6 billion light rail project designed to improve connections between the capital and its suburbs.
Kevin Korell
OTOL Board Leader
Lakewood, NJ
Administrator
Posted 20 April 2019 - 08:18 PM
WTOP radio 4/16/19:
Purple Line construction endangers 66-inch water main in Prince George’s Co.
The Purple Line light rail project is being asked to “cease and desist” construction near a major water main in Maryland’s Prince George’s County.
The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission said it has repeatedly told the Maryland Transit Administration that its construction of the Glenridge Rail Storage Yard in Hyattsville threatens a 66-inch water pipe and the state must relocate the pipe around the rail yard.
SNIP
“I am writing to demand that you cease unauthorized construction work at the Glenridge Rail Storage Yard until further notice,” wrote WSSC General Manager Carla Reid in a letter to MTA administrator Kevin Quinn.
Administrator
Posted 07 May 2019 - 08:02 AM
WTOP radio 5/6/19:
Major water supply pipe safe from Purple Line construction
An agreement has been reached to secure the well-being of a major water main in southern Prince George’s County, Maryland, from any potential harm caused by Purple Line construction.
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“MTA has responded appropriately and they have since moved various construction equipment like cranes, staging material and other kinds of construction debris off of this 66-inch main,” said WSSC spokesman Chuck Brown. “We want unimpeded access to this main, in case there’s a leak or if there’s a break; we want to make sure we can get to it quickly.”
Brown said the utility company is also pleased that the state has agreed to pay for relocating the water pipe, a project that could take two or more years to complete.
Administrator
Posted 06 September 2019 - 05:50 AM
WTOP radio 9/5/19
1st section of Purple Line rail is laid
Maryland officials, including Gov. Larry Hogan, celebrated the laying of the first segment of rail for the Purple Line on Thursday morning.
The Purple Line will connect New Carrollton to Bethesda with 16 miles of east-west light rail over 21 stations.
Maryland Transportation Secretary Pete Rahn called the Purple Line “a critical link” in the region’s transportation system, and Hogan said the line will “integrate seamlessly with Metro, MARC trains, Amtrak to provide more transit options across the region.”
Administrator
Posted 06 September 2019 - 06:01 AM
WDVM-TV Hagerstown, MD 9/5/19
Very first tracks on Purple Line laid in New Carrollton
Officials say this is a milestone for the project
NEW CARROLLTON, Md. (WDVM) — After two years, the very first track of the Purple Line was laid Thursday. This was a pretty big deal for officials in Maryland as this $5 billion project has been in the works for a while.
“It’s going to be a great balance to the overall transportation system which will include not only this but the traffic relief plan,” said Pete K. Rahn, MDOT secretary
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Governor Hogan noted the Purple Line is a successful partnership between federal state and local government along with the private sector. He says this will give commuters more transit options in the region and most importantly create thousands of jobs.
More here w/video report.
Administrator
Posted 23 October 2019 - 08:37 PM
WTOP Radio, 10/21/19
New Purple Line concrete problems include Bethesda shaft
Concrete problems, communications concerns, and traffic or safety changes without permission are among problems raised in Purple Line oversight documents obtained by WTOP through a public records request.
The problems, identified by the state for Purple Line Transit Partners, include multiple issues with concrete in the new Bethesda Metro entrance shaft, which will connect Wisconsin Avenue to the Purple Line platform and Metro platform using a deep elevator bank. The problems are so significant that the concrete in place this summer was “considered defective” by the state.
Administrator
Posted 21 April 2020 - 06:22 PM
Engineering News Record 4/15/20
Final Lawsuit to Block $2B Maryland Light Rail Falls Short
Maryland’s $2-billion Purple Line light rail project has prevailed in the third and likely final attempt to block the new transit system currently under construction across Washington, D.C.’s northern suburbs.
U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar on April 13 rejected claims by a non-profit organization and two residents that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers violated the federal Clean Water Act by allowing construction-related dredging and other work in streams and wetlands without fully considering other options to improve mobility along the project’s16-mile route.
Bredar also wrote that the Maryland Transit Administration, which defended the lawsuit on behalf of the Corps, “clearly demonstrated” that the final design was the “least environmentally damaging practicable alternative.” . . .
Administrator
Posted 21 April 2020 - 06:27 PM
The Washington Post 4/15/20
Builders of Purple Line say they need more time and money: 5 months and $187.7 million
The contractor building Maryland’s Purple Line said it anticipates needing an additional five months and $187.7 million to build a required “crash wall” along the light-rail tracks.
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The contractor, a consortium of companies called Purple Line Transit Partners (PLTP), said in an April 7 letter to the Maryland Transit Administration that CSX Transportation is requiring that a different kind of crash wall be built along the Purple Line tracks from the one the contract anticipated. . . .
Administrator
Posted 02 May 2020 - 09:36 AM
WTOP radio 5/1/20
Latest problem for Maryland’s Purple Line: The builders want out
Yet another setback Friday for Maryland’s long-delayed Purple Line project.
The companies that are building the 16.2-mile light rail line between Bethesda and New Carrollton announced that they are leaving the project, which is a public-private partnership.
SNIP
PLTC is using an exit clause in its design-build agreement that says they can leave if the project is delayed by a year. It plans an “efficient and orderly transition” away from the project that is expected to take two to three months.
In its own statement, the MDOT MTA said litigation has delayed the project since construction started in 2016 and discussions continue.
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