Board Leader
Posted 28 August 2017 - 02:28 PM
Greater Greater Washington, 8/28/17:
What’s so great about the Purple Line, anyway?
This morning, community leaders and advocates will break ground on the Purple Line after three decades of debate and legal battles, some of which are ongoing. Why has the Purple Line kept moving forward? This post from last summer takes a look at why so many people continue to fight for it, from local environmental groups to Governor Hogan.
Kevin Korell
OTOL Board Leader
Lakewood, NJ
Administrator
Posted 28 August 2017 - 05:08 PM
USDOT/FRA news release 8/28/17:
U.S. Department of Transportation Announces $900 Million for Maryland Purple Line Project
FTA today announced a $900 million federal grant agreement for the Maryland Purple Line Light Rail Project. The light rail line will make travel across Montgomery and Prince George’s counties faster and more reliable for thousands of Maryland residents, improving access to major business and activity centers in the state’s most populated counties.
Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao made the announcement during a ceremony today to commit the funds with Governor Larry Hogan (R-MD), Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Congressman Anthony Brown (D-MD), representatives from the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT), the Maryland Transit Administration and other local officials.
The 16.2-mile Maryland Purple Line will connect major activity centers in Bethesda, Silver Spring, Takoma-Langley Park, College Park, and New Carrollton to three Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) rail lines, all three Maryland Area Regional Commuter (MARC) rail lines and Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor line. Although the project will provide direct connections with Metrorail and MARC, it will remain physically and operationally separate. When completed, the line will make suburb-to-suburb cross-county travel easier and faster.
Links:
Purple Line press release
Purple Line Project Profile: FY 2018
Administrator
Posted 06 September 2017 - 10:08 AM
WTOP Radio 9/4/17:
Purple Line opponents hope for last-minute stop to Montgomery Co. trail closure
BETHESDA, Md. — A day before construction for the Purple Line closes a Montgomery County trail, opponents of the transit project gathered for a final walk.
The Georgetown Branch Trail will close Tuesday and will remain blocked off for four to five years.
“We’re infuriated because we’ve only been told of the trail’s closure with less than a week’s notice,” said Ajay Bhatt, president of Friends of the Capital Crescent Trail, a group which opposed the Purple Line project.
The group argued that the project will have a negative impact on the environment and will not help alleviate traffic on the roads.
Administrator
Posted 06 September 2017 - 10:16 AM
WTOP radio 8/28/17 (late post):
Purple Line construction kicks off with a bang
Major construction on the Purple Line began Monday in Hyattsville, Maryland, after years of wrangling over the 16-mile 21-stop light rail project.
HYATTSVILLE, Md. — Major construction on the Purple Line began with a bang Monday in Hyattsville, Maryland, after years of wrangling over the 16-mile, 21-stop light-rail project.
After a ceremonial signing of a $900 million federal funding agreement with U. S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan got behind the controls of a large claw excavator to help rip down a large metal structure at the future home of the Purple Line Operations Center.
Continue here w/photo album.
Administrator
Posted 07 September 2017 - 06:42 AM
Bethesda Magazine, 9/5/17:
Purple Line Opponents File New Lawsuit in Controversial Judge’s Court
Hearing scheduled for Wednesday afternoon on restraining order to halt construction on light-rail project
Purple Line opponents are heading back to federal Judge Richard Leon’s courtroom.
The plaintiffs in the long-running Purple Line lawsuit filed a new lawsuit Tuesday based on the federal Highway Act that argues the state and federal government shouldn’t be allowed to spend money on building the Purple Line because they haven’t properly funded Metro as required by the law.
Administrator
Posted 07 September 2017 - 06:46 AM
The Washington Post, 9/6/17:
Purple Line opponents ask judge to prohibit tree cutting while lawsuit is pending
Purple Line opponents asked a federal judge Wednesday to prohibit a project contractor from cutting down trees along a Montgomery County trail while a lawsuit against the line’s construction is pending.
It was the latest effort by opponents of the light-rail line to block it from being built.
During a hearing Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon said he would hear more arguments Sept. 19 to decide whether to block Maryland’s contractor from clearing trees along the three-mile Georgetown Branch Trail until the lawsuit is resolved. Leon said he also would rule as early as Friday on the opponents’ request for a shorter-term restraining order that would prohibit tree clearing until he decides whether a longer-term ban for the duration of the lawsuit is warranted.
Administrator
Posted 07 September 2017 - 06:47 AM
WTOP radio, 9/6/17:
Judge gives Purple Line opponents hope in bid to halt construction
WASHINGTON – A federal judge suggested Wednesday that Purple Line construction could be halted, at least temporarily, even though much of the case is currently before an appellate court.
Judge Richard Leon said he would rule Friday on the latest effort by opponents of the Maryland light rail line to block construction, which began last week.
Administrator
Posted 07 September 2017 - 04:57 PM
Purple Line Transit Partners'
Construction Updates & NoticesPurple Line Transit Partners (PLTP) is responsible for constructing the Purple Line Light Rail. Below are PLTP's construction notices for work currently happening in the corridor.
Primary work hours will be between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday - Friday, though some work may be conducted seven days a week. Please check each notice for specific work hours.
Administrator
Posted 09 September 2017 - 05:52 PM
WTOP radio 9/8/17:
Ruling allows tree-clearing to continue for now along Purple Line route
WASHINGTON — For now, Purple Line work will continue as planned after Friday’s ruling from a federal judge.
D.C. District Judge Richard Leon ruled against an effort by Purple Line opponents to stop tree-clearing work along the Georgetown Branch Trail. But the judge said he would rule on whether or not work would continue after a hearing on Sept. 19.
Board Leader
Posted 23 September 2017 - 05:48 PM
Washington, DC Post, 9/23/17:
Purple line opponents dealt set back in effort to block light-rail line
Workers could begin slicing down trees along the route of the planned Purple Line as early as Monday, after a federal judge late Friday denied a request for a temporary restraining order from opponents of the light rail project.
Kevin Korell
OTOL Board Leader
Lakewood, NJ
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