M-1 Rail begins welding track; receives TIGER grant

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor
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The M-1 Rail streetcar project in Detroit, Mich., has set up an assembly line near Cass Avenue to weld steel rail into about forty 560-foot-long strings of continuously welded rail (CWR).

 

The M-1 Rail crew is a collaboration between construction manager Stacy & Witbeck, Inc., Detroit-based Farrow Group, Inc., and Crystal Lake, Ill.-based Holland, LLC.
The 560-foot-long strings of CWR will eventually be moved onto Woodward Avenue in preparation for track installation.

In other M-1 Rail news, the public-private partnership will receive $12.2 million in a Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

“Today’s announcement is great news and an important economic boost for Detroit and Southeast Michigan,” said U.S. Sen Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). “This project will help attract new businesses and investments in the region and create thousands of new jobs. Today’s news is another vote of confidence in the amazing public-private partnerships that are moving Detroit forward.”

This new funding will allow the transit project to be finalized by the end of 2016. Construction began in June and will include 11 stations providing links among key destinations along Woodward Avenue. The 3.3-mile streetcar line will run along the Woodward corridor from downtown to the New Center area of Detroit. It will also provide an energy efficient transportation alternative and reduce traffic congestion and parking demand along the corridor. A one-way trip will take approximately 15 minutes depending on the time of day.

 

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