Thursday morning rail news:
— Maryland’s troubled Purple Line light rail project faces another hurdle after opponents filed to appeal a federal court decision to throw out a lawsuit, the third attempting to block the project. The Washington Post reports that current and former residents of Chevy Chase, Md., and the nonprofit Friends of the Capital Crescent Trail filed an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond, Va., because the judge who threw out the case did so before oral arguments [see “Judge Rules for Maryland’s Purple Line project in environmental suit,” News Wire Digest, April 16]. The project, already delayed because of the lawsuits, took another hit earlier this month when the construction companies involved said they would quit the project over the state’s refusal to pay for delays and cost overruns [see “UP closes Little Rock locomotive shop …” News Wire Digest, May 3].
— Replacement will begin this summer of a 112-year-old bridge on NJ Transit’s North Jersey Coast Line damaged by Hurricane Sandy, thanks to a contract approved Wednesday by the agency’s board. NJ.com reports George Harms Construction Co. Inc. received the $247.9 million contract to design a replacement for the bridge over Raritan Bay, the beginning of a three-phase, four-year project. Work on the new bridge, being funded with a $446 million federal Sandy Resiliency Grant, is expected to begin in July, with completion in 2024.
— Fort Worth, Texas, transit agency Trinity Metro will resume fare collection on TEXRail trains, buses and paratransit on May 17, after almost two months of allowing free rides to help social distancing for passengers and employees. Social distancing measures including limiting vehicles to 35% of normal capacity will continue.
Nimby’s, pure and simple, and they’ll fund the suits endlessly; it’s the wealthiest county in MD, and second or third Nationwide.
Does anyone know who is/are funding these endless lawsuits. It’s basically a crosstown line just outside DC in Montgomery County MD. Who doesn’t want it and why do they think it’s worth all the legal costs?