LA Metro may turn to private sector to accelerate vital rail line construction

Written by RT&S Staff
LA Metro
L.A. Metro officials are expected to vote on three alternatives for the Crenshaw/LAX line later this month.

Los Angeles is known for traffic congestion, not rail transit. That all will soon change when Los Angeles Metro finally rolls out a rail route through Sepulveda Pass.

The rail route, Van Nuys to Westwood, might soon be known for its private investment. The Metro’s Board of Directors is considering allowing private contractors to carry an active role in the project’s early design process and quite possibly construction.

In 2016, Metro received three proposals from private companies on ways to accelerate the project, and according to a source two of them calls for the agency to partner with a contractor to plan, construct and possibly operate the rail line.

Back in January, Metro said it would look into four project proposals. Three of them deal with heavy rail routes and a fourth with a monorail system. Metro currently has two heavy rail lines in service, the Red and Purple lines. The agency is likely to enter into two separate pre-development agreements with two separate contractors.

The Van Nuys and Westwood connection was approved by voters in 2016 and is scheduled to open in 2033, but Metro wants everything up and running prior to the 2028 Summer Olympics, which will be held in Los Angeles.

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