56 replies to this topic

[KevinKorell]

Sun-Sailor, Eden Prairie, MN, 3/10/21:

 

 

    Town hall provides update on LRT in Eden Prairie 

 

 

A virtual town hall focusing on the progress of the Southwest Light Rail Transit project, specifically the infrastructure changes in Eden Prairie, was held Monday, March 1.

 

Read

[CNJRoss]

RT&S 3/24/21

 

How much more? Cost of crash wall on Southwest line in Minnesota spikes 356%

 

A 1-mile-long barrier wall required by BNSF will cost more than originally expected.

 

 

The Metropolitan Council knows who is going to pay for this wall, but the new price is staggering.

 

A required element in the Southwest light-rail project, which will connect downtown Minneapolis to Eden Prairie, is a corridor protection barrier that will separate freight rail and passenger rail. Back in 2017, the cost to build such a wall was estimated to be around $20 million. Now it is projected to cost almost $93 million, a whopping 356% increase.

 

The 1-mile-long wall will cover just west of the Royalston Ave./Farmers Market station to the Bryn Mawr station, which is located at the north end of the Southwest line.

 

Continue here.

[KevinKorell]

Twin Cities Business, 7/15/21:

 

 

    Southwest LRT’s Rocky Mess  

 

 

If you want to understand why Southwest Light Rail is likely delayed several years beyond its last anticipated opening date, make a visit to Park Siding, an obscure park on the extreme western edge of south Minneapolis. There, the sounds of water are everywhere. Water gushing through pipes, water being sucked into other pipes, reminiscent of the sounds in a dentist’s office.

 

Full article

[KevinKorell]

KMSP-TV, Fox-9 in Minneapolis, MN, 8/3/21:

 

 

    Plagued by cost overruns, Southwest light rail taps budget reserve  

 

 

Southwest Light Rail, the biggest public works project in Minnesota history, tapped a lifeline Tuesday to keep construction of the over-budget and behind-schedule line moving.

 

Entire story

[CNJRoss]

Progressive Railroading, 8/16/21

 

First tracks placed for Southwest Green Line LRT Extension

 

The first light-rail transit (LRT) tracks have been placed for the Metro Transit Southwest light-rail Green Line extension (Southwest LRT).

 

The rail was installed in Hopkins, Minnesota, near the future Downtown Hopkins Station in Hennepin County.

 

This milestone brings the project one step closer to connecting the communities of Eden Prairie, Minnetonka, Hopkins, St. Louis Park and Minneapolis, according to a joint news release issued by the Metropolitan Council, Hennepin County and Metro Transit.

 

Continue here.

[CNJRoss]

RT&S, 8/26/21

 

As change orders continue, Met Council has no more money available for Southwest project

 

 

More details are emerging of the change orders on the Southwest LRT project in Minnesota.

 

Federal Transit Administrator Nuria Fernandez toured the construction site on Aug. 25, but did not give any indication if the federal government will be providing any more funding for the project. If change orders continue, local and federal funding will be the only way out. The price of the Southwest LRT project now sits at $2.2 billion, making it the most expensive in Minnesota history. The Metropolitan Council OK’d the use of the final $200 million available for the work.

 

Continue here.

[KevinKorell]

KSTP-TV, 5-ABC in Minneapolis, MN, 8/24/21:

 

 

   Southwest Light Rail Transit line final cost, opening date remain unknown    

 

 

If you're wondering when the Southwest Light Rail Transit line will open and how much it will ultimately cost, get in line.

 

More

[KevinKorell]

Minneapolis, MN Star-Tribune, 1/22/22:

 

 

     Minneapolis Park Board declines to extend construction permit for Southwest Light Rail tunnel  

 

 

Frustration with the Southwest light-rail's construction delays and soaring costs boiled over last week when the Minneapolis Park Board denied the Metropolitan Council a permit to close the Cedar Lake Parkway until the end of the year.

 

Read

[CNJRoss]

RT&S, 1/25/22

 

Park board, fed up by rail tunnel construction delays, denies Met Council’s request for permit extension

 

 

•  

A 50-ft-wide work site for tunnel construction is making it prone to flooding.

 

The Minneapolis Park Board is fed up with delays dealing with Southwest light-rail construction, so it added to the problem.

 

The board refused to issue the Metropolitan Council a permit to close Cedar Lake Parkway for the rest of the year. Lying below the parkway is a light-rail tunnel near the Kenilworth Corridor that is under construction and has been the victim of recent delays.

 

The Met Council said the complexity of the project is requiring the extra time. The tunnel extends 20 ft below the water table and the work site is only 50 ft wide and has been the victim of flooding.

 

Park Commissioner Elizabeth Shaffer walked the tunnel project last week and at the last board meeting said the Met Council is facing issues that were predicted by residents before work began.  . . .

Continue here.

[KevinKorell]

Bring Me The News, 1/26/22:

 

 

 

    Proposed settlement: Southwest LRT to cost millions more, would take 3 more years to finish     

 

 

 

It looks like more delays are in the Southwest Light Rail Transit project's future and the state's costliest public works project may get even more expensive, according to a proposed settlement with a contractor.

 

Details

 

This is a MAJOR date slippage.