“It’s going to be an economic driver”: Purple Line gets go ahead to build in College Park

The 16-mile light rail spanning from Bethesda to New Carrollton, is a six-year, $3.3 billion project, funded by public-private sectors, according to the Purple Line website. The transportation system will be in a “final design and construction” phase from 2016 to 2021, before service begins in 2022, according to the Purple Line website.

None of the council members, including Mayor Patrick Wojahn, opposed to this measure.

“We just read the whole consent agenda, there’s a motion to approve the consent agenda, and then it all passes at once,” Wojahn said. “So there wasn’t any separate discussion on that matter at all.”

Although it passed unanimously and without discourse, approving this permit marks an essential step in the construction of the Purple Line, Wojahn said.

“It’s a legal necessity,” Wojahn said. “But it’s fairly simple.”

Now that the measure has been approved, Maryland Transit Administration contractors should be able to start construction whenever they are ready, said Scott Somers, the College Park city manager. “I think we’re going to see some track on the ground within about a year or so.”

Both Wojahn and Somers said they were hopeful for positive things once this transportation line is completed.

“I’m hoping that all the commuters who come to the University of Maryland from Montgomery County or over from New Carrollton will be able to hop onto the Purple Line rather than getting on the beltway,” Somers said.

There is a possibility of reducing congestion on the beltway, he said, but the long-term impact is more substantial.

“We’ve seen new developments spurring around transit, such as the Purple Line,” Somers said. “I continue to think that it’s going to be an economic driver for our region, our city, [and] our university.”