Minnesota’s USD 1.79 billion, 14.5-mile Southwest Light Rail project failed to get approval from the state Legislature for USD 135 million in funding. This financial participation from the state was necessary for the project to receive USD 895 million from the federal government.
Rail officials at the Minneapolis Metropolitan Council are currently trying to find other solutions to replace the state funding. One option is special funding, granted at an optional legislative session, which would pay for a variety of public works and transportation projects. However, Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton said he was not sure about the future of that initiative.
The Minneapolis Metropolitan Council was expected to begin construction of the project in 2017 and start service in 2020.
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