Austin's 2013 East Riverside Corridor Plan called for high-capacity transit to be installed along East Riverside Drive. This became part of the original Blue Line, which failed to find support in 2014 and was shelved. The Gold Line was formed from a segment of this original proposal, and is expected to be built as a separate bus rapid transit line.


In 2018, Capital Metro announced a new long-range planning project entitled Project Connect that outlines several major transit corridors consisting of commuter rail, light rail, and bus rapid transit. The Blue Line corridor will include a transit pathway for a light rail or bus rapid transit line running on the west side of Downtown Austin to Austin–Bergstrom International Airport in southeast Austin. The line was included as part of the Project Connect referendum during the 2020 United States presidential election.


South to north, from Austin–Bergstrom International Airport to the North Lamar Transit Center.


The MIA Mover is an automated people mover (APM) system which opened at the Miami International Airport (MIA) in metropolitan Miami, Florida, United States on September 9, 2011. The MIA Mover is designed to quickly transport landside passengers between Miami International Airport's Main Terminal and the Miami Intermodal Center (MIC). The MIA Mover is one of three separate automated people movers operating at the airport. The others are the Skytrain, which operates within Concourse D, and the MIA e Train people mover connecting Concourse E's satellite building.


In 2007, construction of a people mover instead of an extension of the existing Metrorail system to the airport became the preferred option for local authorities to provide greater connectivity to the airport terminals (Metrorail will connect at Miami Airport Station). On March 2, 2009, ground was officially broken for the project. Projected to transport 48,000 daily visitors by 2020, the MIA Mover construction utilized design-build methods and was paid for from a combination of revenue from the Miami-Dade Aviation Department’s Capital Improvement Program and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT).


In May 2012, MIA Mover suffered a minor derailment, and a breakdown in July 2017 required riders to walk along the tracks escorted by fire fighters.


Costing an estimated $259 million to complete, the link travels east from the MIA Station, to Central Boulevard and finally to NW 21st Street, where it curves north into the MIC Station. The ride lasts approximately three minutes. The concrete guideways are generally elevated an average of above grade and are supported by concrete piers every . The vehicles used are Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Crystal Movers (The same model also operates on the Skytrain in Concourse D).


The MIA Mover has two stations: the MIC Station and the MIA Station.


The MIC Station is the eastern terminus of the line located on the fourth floor of the MIC. The station contains direct access to the MIC's rental car center and Miami Airport Station where connections can be made to Metrorail, Tri-Rail, buses and taxicabs. The station is being constructed by FDOT.


The MIA Station is the western terminus of the line located on the third floor of the main terminal building between the Flamingo and Dolphin Parking Garages. Constructed by MDAD, a storage and maintenance facility for the APM vehicles is located beneath the MIA Station.


The Gold Line is a rapid transit line in the MARTA rail system. It operates between Doraville and Airport stations, running through Doraville, Chamblee, Brookhaven, Atlanta, East Point and College Park.


The Gold Line was previously called the Northeast-South Line until MARTA switched to a color-based naming system in October 2009. The North-South Line, from its launch, was considered one line, denoted with an orange color on old system maps until 2006 when the North Branch and the Northeast branch were redesignated as the North-South Line (the current Red Line) and the Northeast-South Line (the current Gold Line). Technically, with the 2009 designation change, there is no longer a mention of the color orange for the line. Using the Five Points station as a reference point, the Northeast Line was designated for trips headed to Doraville, and the South Line was designated for trips headed to the Airport.


Now known as the Gold Line, it shares trackage with its counterpart, the Red Line, between Airport and just north of the Lindbergh Center.


The Gold Line runs above ground, at-grade and below ground in various portions of its route. It begins at the northeastern terminus, Doraville station in Doraville. The nonrevenue tracks extend northeastward from the station north of I-285. It then goes southwestward paralleling Peachtree Road in DeKalb County. Upon entering Atlanta in Buckhead, it crosses "over" the Red Line in the median of GA 400 before joining the Red Line, going southwest paralleling I-85. It turns south through Midtown and enters downtown Atlanta, where it meets the Blue and Green Lines at Five Points station. Leaving downtown, the Gold Line continues south, paralleling Lee Street and Main Street into East Point and College Park before reaching its terminus at the Airport station.


When the color-based name change was proposed, it was the Yellow Line at first. However, in February 2010, the name was revised to Gold in order to address a concern among the Asian-American residents along the rail corridor. The section of the Gold Line that is not shared by the Red Line has a significant number of Asian-American residents, to whom the term "yellow" is considered derogatory. Despite the color name change, interestingly many MARTA system maps denoted the Gold Line with the yellow color still until 2017.


The Blue Line is a rapid transit line of the Washington Metro system, consisting of 27 stations in Fairfax County, Alexandria and Arlington, Virginia; the District of Columbia; and Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The Blue Line runs from Franconia–Springfield to Largo Town Center. The line shares tracks with the Orange Line for 13 stations, the Silver Line for 18, and the Yellow Line for six. Only three stations are exclusive to the Blue Line.


All Blue Line service has been suspended between February 13, 2021 and May 23, 2021 due to platform reconstruction at and . Shuttle buses are provided to the closed stations.


With the formation of WMATA in October 1966, planning of the system shifted from federal hands to a regional body with representatives of the District, Maryland and Virginia. Congressional route approval was no longer a key consideration. Instead, routes had to serve each local suburban jurisdiction to assure that they would approve bond referenda to finance the system.


The Virginia portion of the Blue Line took much of its present form along the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad right-of-way to Colchester, as construction along existing right-of-way is the least expensive way to build into the suburbs. A surface-level section of the Blue Line that parallels Virginia State Route 110 where passing Arlington National Cemetery and traveling between The Pentagon and Rosslyn replaced a section of the closed Rosslyn Connecting Railroad, a subsidiary of the Pennsylvania Railroad. The railroad's predecessor, the Washington Southern Railway, constructed the section in 1896 within the grade of the old disused Alexandria Canal.


Service on the Blue Line began on July 1, 1977, on 18 stations between National Airport in Arlington and Stadium-Armory in Washington – the first link of the Metro to Virginia. The line was extended by three stations to Addison Road on November 22, 1980. Service south of National Airport began on June 15, 1991 when Van Dorn Street opened. The original plan for the line was completed when this link was extended to Franconia–Springfield on June 29, 1997. Two new stations in Maryland – Morgan Boulevard and Largo Town Center – opened on December 18, 2004.


From its opening on November 20, 1978, until December 11, 1979, the Orange Line was co-aligned with the Blue Line from National Airport to Stadium-Armory, with the Orange Line continuing east from Stadium-Armory to New Carrollton. Beginning December 1, 1979, the Orange Line diverged westward from Rosslyn to Ballston. The Blue and Orange Lines remain co-aligned from Rosslyn to Stadium-Armory and the Silver Line is co-signed along the same route as well.


The Blue Line was originally planned to follow a slightly different route. The plan would have sent Blue Line trains to Huntington, with Yellow Line trains serving Franconia–Springfield. This was changed due to a shortage of rail cars at the time of the completion of the line to Huntington. Because fewer rail cars were required to operate Yellow Line service than would be required to run Blue Line service out to Huntington – due to the Yellow Line's shorter route – the line designations were switched. From 1999 to 2008, the Blue Line operated to Huntington on July 4, as part of Metro's special Independence Day service pattern.


The ARS had the Blue Line end at Addison Road. However, sports fans continually argued for a extension to the Capital Centre sports arena in Largo, Maryland. On February 27, 1997, the WMATA board approved construction of the extension. By the time the extension opened in 2004, professional basketball and hockey had relocated to a new arena atop the Gallery Place Station and the Capital Centre was replaced with a shopping mall. However, the extension still drew considerable sport spectator traffic because it is within walking distance of the FedExField football stadium. The extension cost $456 million.


In 1998, Congress changed the name of the Washington National Airport to the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport with the law specifying that no money be spent to implement the name change. As a result, WMATA did not change the name of the National Airport Station (which never included the full name of the airport). In response to repeated inquiries from Republican congressmen that the station be renamed, WMATA stated that stations are renamed only at the request of the local jurisdiction. Because both Arlington County and the District of Columbia were controlled by Democrats, the name change was blocked. Not until 2001 did Congress make changing the station's name a condition of further federal funding.


In May 2018, Metro announced an extensive renovation of platforms at twenty stations across the system. To accommodate these platform reconstructions, Blue and Yellow Lines south of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport would be closed from May to September 2019, in what would be the longest line closure in Metro's history. All trains terminated at Ronald Reagan Airport as a result.


From March 26, 2020 until June 28, 2020, trains were bypassing , , , , , and stations due to the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. All stations (except Arlington Cemetery) reopened beginning on June 28, 2020. Arlington Cemetery station was later reopened on August 23, 2020.


Beginning on November 27, 2020 until March 14, 2021, Blue Line trains began serving and stations during most weekends due to Metro modernizing the signal system at Alexandria Rail Yard causing both and Van Dorn Street stations to be closed. Additionally, trains operated to Huntington between December 20, 2020 and January 3, 2021 due to a full closure at Alexandria Rail Yard. Metro choose to do a full shutdown instead of single tracking because completing the same work with weekend single tracking could more than double the time for completion, while providing severely limited rail service with waits up to 36 minutes between trains. However work was completed three weeks earlier.


On December 14, 2020, WMATA announced that Blue Line service will be suspended between February 13 to May 23, 2021 in order to rebuild the platforms at both and . Additional Yellow Line trains will operate between and while Silver Line trains will serve in part of the Blue Line.


In terms of WMATA's internal route designations, the Blue Line service travels along the entirety of the J Route (from the terminus at Franconia-Springfield to the C & J junction just south of King Street), part of the C Route (from the C & J junction just south of King Street to Metro Center), part of the D Route (from Metro Center to the D & G Junction just east of Stadium-Armory) and the entire G Route (from the D & G junction past Stadium-Armory to the terminus at Largo Town Center). The Blue Line needs 23 six-car trains (138 rail cars) to run at peak capacity.


On June 18, 2012, Metro initiated its "Rush+" service plan, which had been under consideration for some time. This plan was intended to clear congestion at Rosslyn Station, where the Blue and Orange lines meet and ultimately prepare the tracks to accommodate the Silver Line. Under the plan, Blue Line trains continued on the usual route but some Yellow Line trains originated at Franconia–Springfield and were routed over the Fenwick Bridge to Greenbelt. During rush hour there were fewer Blue Line trains on the tracks which could mean potentially increased wait times for regular Blue Line customers. Furthermore, some Orange Line trains were routed to Largo Town Center until the Silver Line opened in 2014.


In addition, a transportation planning group has proposed an extension of the Blue Line that would reach Potomac Mills in Prince William County.


The following stations are along the line, from southwest to east:


The K Line (known as the Crenshaw/LAX Line during planning) is an under-construction light rail line that will run through southwest Los Angeles, in a north to south direction. It will connect the Crenshaw neighborhood and Leimert Park to the City of Inglewood and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). When completed, the line will be a part of the Los Angeles County Metro Rail System and operate in an L shaped pattern along the current C Line between Norwalk and Aviation/LAX then on the new infrastructure to Expo/Crenshaw.


The project is being built by Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro). The project has been given high priority by Metro in its long-range plan; it has funding set aside in Measure R. The Final EIR was certified on September 22, 2011. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) gave its approval to build the $1.766 billion light rail line in January 2012.


Metro began pre-construction in July 2012, and a Notice to Proceed was issued by Metro in September 2013. An official ground-breaking ceremony for the project was held on January 21, 2014. Heavy construction began in June 2014 and initial revenue service was projected to begin by mid-2020. , the line is behind schedule but is 98% completed. Revenue service is now expected in November 2022.


The Metro Crenshaw/LAX Line project is an 8.5-mile light rail (LRT) route, starting at the Expo/Crenshaw station on the E Line and connecting at a wye to the existing C Line just to the west of Aviation/LAX station. The initial segment includes eight stations; an infill station, Aviation/96th Street station, will be built later to accommodate a planned people mover system at LAX.


The northern half of the route follows Crenshaw Boulevard from Exposition Boulevard down to 67th Street. The southern half of the route utilizes the Harbor Subdivision Right-Of-Way (ROW) from Crenshaw Boulevard to the Green Line just west of Imperial/Aviation.


At its northern terminus, Metro has decided not to directly connect the Crenshaw Line track to the at-grade E Line track. Such a connection would have allowed the Crenshaw Line to interline with the E Line and terminate in Downtown Los Angeles. However, Metro argues that this is not operationally feasible (three lines would share tracks on Flower Street leading into Downtown, putting the tracks above their maximum capacity, leading to delays), and is therefore not worth the cost. Instead, its northern terminus will be an underground subway station at Expo/Crenshaw, built to enable a planned northern extension to the D Line and the Hollywood/Highland station on the B Line in Hollywood.


The project will include nine new Metro stations, including an infill station that will not open until several years after the rest of the line:


The question of how the new segment would be integrated into the Metro Rail system was the subject of some controversy in 2018 as completion of the project seemed looming. Early proposals had suggested that a new line would operate between Expo/Crenshaw station in the north and Aviation/Century station in the south or possibly extend to Redondo Beach station once the stations west of Aviation/LAX station could accommodate 3-car trains, with the stretch southwest of the wye continuing to be served by the C Line as well. An additional service would have connected Norwalk station to the new Aviation/Century station and planned LAX/Metro Transit Center, as well as the LAX Automated People Mover.


Los Angeles Railway Line 5 yellow streetcars served Crenshaw and Florence Boulevards until 1955 when the service was replaced with buses.


Extending the Green Line to LAX was an early goal of Los Angeles transit planners. Studies in 1984 and 1988 outlined a route from the junction near Aviation/Century and running to the northeast, similar to later plans for the second section of the Sepulveda Pass Transit Corridor.


The line was planned following the Los Angeles riots of 1992 as a way to better serve transit-dependent residents in the corridor while at the same time providing stimulus for positive economic growth in the South Los Angeles region. It was championed by State Senator Diane Watson and County Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, both representing portions of the corridor.


In 1993 and 1994, a Major Investment Study (MIS) was initiated. At that time, the project was referred to as the Crenshaw–Prairie Corridor. A route refinement study followed in 1999–2000 to improve the shelf life and to narrow down the number of alternatives. An architectural design and planning visioning was performed by the University of Southern California school of Architecture in 1996. A new Major Investment Study (MIS) was completed in 2003. From 2007 through 2009, Metro conducted a draft environmental review of the line, taking public input and analyzing the environmental impacts and benefits of various alternatives. In December 2009, the Metro Board approved the Draft Environmental Impact Report and chose a "Locally Preferred Alternative".


This alternative, which included the preferred mode and route, became the subject of a final environmental study, resulting in a Final Environmental Impact Report. This final study was completed in May 2011. Local community leaders, neighborhood councils, Los Angeles County Supervisors Yvonne Burke and Mark Ridley-Thomas, as well as U.S. Representative Diane Watson continued to express enthusiastic support for the proposed light rail line. In a letter to Metro dated November 5, 2007, Watson wrote:


Having advocated strenuously for a light rail 'spur line' to carry passengers from the Wilshire Corridor down the Crenshaw Corridor and, ultimately, to LAX for 25 years now, I am delighted to offer continued encouragement, advocacy and feedback for a Metro study (to)…avoid aggravating (the) Leimert Park traffic bottleneck, Coliseum to Vernon;…Wilshire/La Brea station connection to Westside Corridor line, avoiding hydrogen sulfide;…fully consider (the) below-grade option. (Comment ID 116-125 in the cited link)


The route was designated as the K Line by November 2019.


In April 2020, Metro announced that the completion date for the project would be pushed to no earlier than May 2021 due to construction issues. The support structures for bridges and tunnels had concrete plinths that were incorrectly installed, requiring extensive repairs to sections where tracks had already been installed.


The Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) describes several alternatives, as well as "Design Options" (optional features with additional cost). Many other alignments were considered previously, but eliminated due to lack of feasibility or benefit.


The following table summarizes key characteristics of each alternative:


The route had several segments under consideration for grade-separations. The LRT Baseline (DEIR) included a minimal set of grade separations: the design options specified additional grade separations. The locally preferred alternative (LPA) adopted by the Metro Board included the LRT Baseline plus some additional grade separations (e.g. Design Options 1, 2 and 4). Other grade separations were also still under consideration. All grade separations are subject to the Metro Grade Crossing Policy.


The following table describes the Crenshaw Corridor's route, divided into segments with potential grade-separations:


Metro staff studied and ranked 16 potential sites for the required maintenance facility. Through several rounds of screening, all but five were eliminated.


In March 2011, a Supplemental DEIS/R was released to the public, specifically related to the maintenance facility. This study was completed due to changes to capacity requirements of the Crenshaw Line. Three of the screened sites were carried forward into this study, and one new site was added. The four site options studied in the Supplemental DEIS/R (from north to south) are:


Following the public comment period in April 2011, staff recommended adoption of the Arbor Vitae/Bellanca site, since it had no public objections and all environmental impacts could be mitigated.


In 2010, Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas requested study of a tunnel through Park Mesa Heights on Crenshaw Boulevard between 48th and 59th Streets. Metro staff studied the option and recommended against it. Staff concluded the option offers minimal benefit but high cost. The additional cost for the tunnel would be $219 million, or $167 million with Slauson station removed. Instead that section of the line will be at-grade level.


In May 2011, Supervisor Ridley-Thomas asked the Metro Board to vote on a motion requiring construction of both the tunnel and the subway station in Leimert Park Plaza (Crenshaw/Vernon). The Board voted to include an underground station at Leimert Park and approved the station only under the condition that the entire project can be completed within its original budget.


In May 2013, the Metro Board voted 10-1 to officially include an underground station at Leimert Park (Crenshaw/Vernon, at Crenshaw Blvd and 43rd Place), and another at-grade station at Hindry Ave (Florence/Hindry), in the Crenshaw/LAX Line project.


In 2014, Metro approved the planning and scoping of an infill station at 96th and Aviation, which would connect to the proposed LAX Train automated people mover system to the airport terminals.</ref> The station would be less than half a mile north of the under construction Aviation/Century station, and would serve as Metro Rail's main gateway to the airport itself, while the Aviation/Century station would serve destinations along the busy Century Boulevard corridor. The proposed station would be served by Green Line trains as well as trains along the new Crenshaw/LAX Line.


In December 2009, the Metro Board selected a Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA), and in 2010 Metro conducted the Final Environmental Study for this alternative. This alternative included the LRT Baseline alignment, plus Design Options 1, 2 and 4. At this time, Metro also authorized further study of the remaining design options.


In selecting this alternative, Metro staff eliminated the BRT (bus rapid transit) alternative, stating that it was too slow to provide much benefit, and that it generally lacked public support.


Metro staff also concluded that the northernmost portion of the Crenshaw Corridor between Exposition and Wilshire was too expensive to include in the project if implemented as light-rail. Thus, study and implementation of that segment was deferred, to be considered separately in the future as a northern extension ("Phase 2") of the Crenshaw Line (see section below).


Metro estimated the light-rail line will initially have a daily ridership between 13,000 and 16,000, would cost $1.3 billion - $1.8 billion (in 2008 dollars), would take five years to complete construction, and would generate 7,800 construction jobs over this period.


Measure R assumes a project cost of $1.470 billion (2008). Its sales tax revenues will provide up to $1.207 billion (82% of the budgeted cost). The remaining $263 million is expected to come from local funding. The Crenshaw Corridor project did not seek state or federal funding. The LPA (including Design Options 1, 2 and 4) was estimated to cost $1.306 billion, which was within budget. If Metro were to include the remaining three design options, the cost would rise to $1.766 billion, exceeding the Measure R project cost by nearly $300 million, requiring cost deferments.


In October 2010, the Federal government of the United States awarded the Crenshaw Corridor a $546 million loan, to be paid back by Measure R tax revenue. The loan allowed pre-construction for the project to begin in summer 2012. The final Crenshaw/LAX Transit Corridor budget was $1.763 billion, as it included most of the design options. At that time, project completion was expected in 2019. Ultimately, the LPA, with the addition of Design Option 6 and the underground Leimert Park station, is budgeted at $1.766 billion.


The original plans for the Crenshaw Corridor project connected Wilshire Blvd to LAX. However, during environmental review, Metro determined that if LRT were selected as the preferred mode, the cost for the entire route would exceed the project budget. In December 2009, the Metro Board selected LRT as the preferred mode; as a result, the part of the corridor north of Exposition Boulevard was deferred until funds become available. This segment can be considered a "Phase 2" extension of the original line. Any Phase 2 extension would be expected to connect to the portion of the D Line currently under construction as part of the Purple Line Extension project, as well as to the B Line.


In May 2009, Metro released a report on the feasibility of an extension north to Wilshire Boulevard. It first screened two routes—one to Wilshire/La Brea, and another to Wilshire/Crenshaw. Through this screening, staff concluded that Wilshire/La Brea station would be more cost-effective and more compatible with land uses and plans along its route. Specifically, the report cited the following advantages of the La Brea route over the Crenshaw route:


In October 2010, the Metro Board voted to eliminate the Wilshire/Crenshaw station from the Purple Line Subway Extension project, for similar reasons.


The 3.5-mile Wilshire/La Brea route heads north on Crenshaw to Venice, west on Venice to San Vicente, continuing northwest on San Vicente to La Brea, and then north on La Brea to Wilshire. It has three possible stations: Crenshaw/Adams (optional), Pico/San Vicente, and Wilshire/La Brea.


The feasibility report also allowed for two possible branches/extensions along La Brea Ave, Fairfax Ave, La Cienega Blvd or San Vicente Blvd heading north of Wilshire into West Hollywood and/or Hollywood.


In November 2010, Metro staff produced an initial review of the feasibility of studying a new transit corridor to connect the Crenshaw Corridor to West Hollywood and/or Hollywood.


In May 2014, the West Hollywood City Council considered a proposal by Councilmembers John Heilman and Jeffrey Prang to engage a lobbyist to promote the need for Metro rail services in West Hollywood. The Heilman/Prang proposal notes that “former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa assured West Hollywood representatives that West Hollywood would be ‘next in line’.” In 2015, the West Hollywood City Council launched the West Hollywood Advocates for Metro Rail (WHAM) as part of a campaign to win grassroots support for a Metro rail extension into the city.


In September 2016, in a letter to West Hollywood City Councilmember Lindsey Horvath, Metro CEO Phil Washington outlined several steps Metro is taking to make the Crenshaw/LAX northern extension “shovel ready” should county voters approve Measure M, a countywide ballot measure adding new transit projects and expediting others previously approved under Measure R.


The final design of the first phase (the original project line south of Exposition Blvd to LAX) would determine how the Phase 2 project could or would connect to Phase 1. The original locally preferred alternative (LPA) for the Crenshaw/LAX Line from the draft environmental impact study (Draft EIS/EIR) specified an at-grade station at the Phase 1 Expo/Crenshaw terminus, with the Leimert Park tunnel ending several blocks south of that, near 39th Street. If Phase 1 had been built per the LPA, then Phase 2 would have require the building of a new tunnel with a connection near 39th Street. This would have required the north end of the Leimert Park tunnel to be outfitted with knockout panels to allow for the possible future extension north.


Metro also studied "Design Option 6" for Phase 1, which would extend the Leimert Park tunnel north to the line's northern terminus at Exposition, with an underground station at Crenshaw/Exposition. This design option was selected so that Phase 2 can connect to Phase 1 directly at the Crenshaw/Exposition station's tunnels. This design option increased the cost of the original Phase 1 project by $236 million.


The Silver Line is a rapid transit line of the Washington Metro system, consisting of 28 operational stations and an additional six under construction. The line runs in Fairfax County and Arlington County, Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The Silver Line currently runs from in Virginia to in Maryland. Five stations are shared with the Orange Line alone, thirteen with both the Orange and Blue lines from to , and five stations with the Blue Line alone to both lines' eastern terminus at Largo Town Center. Only five operating stations, which began service on July 26, 2014, and the six stations under construction are exclusive to the Silver Line.


The portion of the Silver Line between its split from the Orange Line and Wiehle–Reston East station is in Fairfax County, Virginia and was constructed as Phase 1 of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project. Phase 2 expands the line another to Ashburn in Loudoun County, via Washington Dulles International Airport, adding six stations to the line. Construction of Phase 2 began in 2014; its opening is expected in early 2022. The $6.8 billion project is Metro's largest expansion by route mileage since its inception in 1976.


In 1995, the Virginia General Assembly authorized the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) to provide for "additional improvements to the Dulles Toll Road and Dulles Access Road corridor including, but not limited to, mass transit, including rail and capacity-enhancing treatments from surplus net revenues of the Dulles Toll Road".


In 1998, Raytheon engineers and constructors proposed to build and operate a Dulles Corridor Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system. In January 1999, the Tysons-Dulles Corridor Group (which included Bechtel Corporation and West*Group) offered a competing BRT proposal that would ultimately extend the rail line to Ashburn. These proposals prompted the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) to evaluate the merits of BRT and heavy rail public transit in the corridor.


In February 2005, the CTB approved a 50 cent increase in the Dulles Toll Road toll rates, effective May 22, 2005, and "reaffirm[ed] that no less than 85% of existing surplus Dulles Toll Road net revenues shall be dedicated for mass transit and rail in the [Dulles] Corrdor" and provided "that all additional toll revenue generated from the May 22, 2005 toll adjustment shall be dedicated to the [Metrorail] Project." Between July 1, 2003, and November 1, 2008, when the toll road was transferred to MWAA, over $138 million in net surplus toll revenue (together with accumulated interest) was provided to MWAA for the Silver Line project.


As a result of the surcharge increases, the toll in 2012 will be $2.25, or 16 cents per mile. The toll increase proposal drew 221 public comments and opponents outnumbered supporters by about 3 to 1. However, as the cost estimate grew from $5.25 billion to $6.8 billion, no final decisions have been reached to address the projected shortfall.


After allegations that the design contractor had inflated costs for the tunnel in order to avoid sharing the job with an outside tunneling contractor, the long tunnel concept was revived in April 2006. The allegations led to calls for an outside cost estimate to determine more realistic tunnel costs. On May 15, 2006, Virginia Transportation Secretary Pierce R. Homer announced the creation of an advisory panel headed by the American Society of Civil Engineers. The panel had about two months to evaluate options for completing the line through Tysons, with the results presented to the state on July 27, 2006 and published on July 31, 2006.


On September 6, 2006, Virginia Governor Tim Kaine announced his decision in favor of an elevated track through Tysons. In his statement, Kaine said he believed a tunnel would be the best option, but decided against it, citing a fear of losing federal funding for the project.


Shortly after Governor Kaine's decision, the Greater McLean Chamber of Commerce formed a coalition of tunnel supporters, called Tysons Tunnel, Inc. and put forth a technical proposal to help revive consideration of building a tunnel through Tysons. The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation hired an independent consultant to assess the coalition's proposal. However, the consultant's report – sent to Secretary Homer on March 7, 2007 stated that "[t]here is a significant risk that the project cost of a Large Bore Tunnel would not meet the Federal Transit Administration's cost-effectiveness ratio criteria, which could compromise federal funding for the project".


On November 26, 2007, Tysons Tunnel, Inc. filed a lawsuit against the United States Department of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) in the Eastern District of Virginia challenging the denial of their petition to reopen and consider additional evidence regarding the benefits of a tunnel over the aerial option. Gary Baise, the Republican challenger to Gerry Connolly's Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairmanship, represented Tysons Tunnel. By 2010, Tysons Tunnel, Inc. ceased operations.


On April 30, 2008, the FTA reversed the earlier decision and approved the above-ground project, saying that it met standards for cost efficiency, construction and ridership, moving it closer to receiving the $900 million in federal funding. Officials told "The Washington Post" that the project would move into the final design stage. The FTA approved funding for the project on December 4, 2008.


On March 10, 2009, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood signed the formal agreement that awarded the $900 million promised by the federal government for construction of the Silver Line, with major construction expected to begin in several weeks. Utility relocation work started at Tysons in mid-2008.


MWAA planned to award a separate design-build contract for Phase II. The Phase II contract was awarded in May 2013 and the projected completion date was to be in 2018. However, it was later extended to 2020 or 2021.


Although construction was planned to begin in 2005, the delays in approval of funding pushed back the start date. To facilitate Silver Line construction, responsibility for the project was transferred on November 1, 2008, from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) to the MWAA. Utility relocation work began in 2008, and construction began on March 12, 2009.


The extension runs in its own right-of-way on a route similar to that of the Dulles Access Road, running both at grade and via aerial structures. The only significant diversions from the access road route are for the stops in Tysons and at Dulles International Airport, where the Metro is currently planned to alternate between subway and elevated track to maintain the exclusive right-of-way.


Service on Phase I of the Silver Line opened on July 26, 2014 between and Largo Town Center, with five new stations being added to the existing network west of East Falls Church. The full line to Ashburn, including a station at Dulles International Airport, was at the time expected to be completed in 2018.


One lane of southbound Virginia Route 123 in Tysons was closed for a two-year period, starting on February 22, 2010, for construction of the McLean Metro station. The distance impacted was two blocks, from Scotts Crossing Road to the Capital Beltway.


When the Orange Line was originally constructed in 1977, foundations for the bridges to carry the Silver Line over I-66 to the median of the Dulles Access Road were built up to ground level. These foundations included steel piles that were driven into the ground and capped with concrete. However, detailed records for these original foundations were lost. As a result, engineers asked for the foundations to be inspected by digging around them to determine the condition of each pile under the concrete foundation caps.


Some of the foundations are located in confined spots adjacent to I-66 and the electrified third rail of the Orange Line, making access difficult. Dulles Transit Partners offered to inspect seven foundations that were easily accessible, but the FTA insisted that all foundations be tested. Dulles Transit Partners and MWAA agreed to test all foundations before the bridge piers were built upon them. This required the portion of the Orange Line between the West Falls Church and East Falls Church Metro stations to be taken out of service on weekends while the tests were conducted. All foundations were acceptable and the bridge construction proceeded using the existing foundations.


There has been controversy over the contract between the MWAA and Dulles Transit Partners, which consists of Bechtel and Washington Group International. The $2.7 billion project was originally awarded by VDOT under the Virginia Public-Private Partnership Act, rather than by using conventional competitive bidding based upon a detailed specification. As a result, the contractor is allowed to both design and build the project with no upper cap on its cost. Problems could arise from the arrangement where MWAA is supervising the design and construction but ultimately WMATA must operate the Silver Line. The contract provides for price escalation of $3 million to $6 million a month for delays. VDOT transferred the contract to MWAA when MWAA took over the project in November 2008.


The original schedule planned for revenue service to begin in 2013. The contractor reported to MWAA on February 7, 2014, that construction was complete. MWAA had fifteen days to review the documentation and decide whether it agreed, but on February 24 they announced that the contractor had failed to meet seven of twelve criteria outlined in the contract.


On March 19, 2014, MWAA announced additional delays in the project due to public address speakers and a communications cable that did not meet code and did not offer a new completion date. They hoped to turn it over to WMATA by April 9, 2014. WMATA requires an additional 90 days for testing and training. The system then underwent 90 days of testing and staff training. This suggested, at the time, that the line could open as early as July 4, 2014. On May 27, 2014, WMATA was handed over control of the line, with service to begin "within 90 days". Finally, on June 24, 2014, it was revealed that the official opening date for the first five stations had been set for July 26.


After a set of speeches and announcements prior to opening, which were televised on local cable television station News Channel 8, and attended by the Governor of Virginia, Terry McAuliffe, Metro General Manager Richard Sarles, the entire Metro Board of directors, District of Columbia Mayor Vincent C. Gray, and other regional politicians, a ribbon cutting took place at , and shortly after noon on July 26, 2014, the five new stations were opened for passenger service.


Although the Silver Line attracted riders, its average weekday boarding was 17,100 during its first year of operations instead of the projected 25,000 riders.


In 2003, predating Booth's attempt, WMATA released a professionally designed graphic that displayed the Silver Line on an unofficial map that resembled the current version, but with thin lines. The interplay between Metro's unofficial proposal and those of other designers received attention in a number of press outlets. A poster displaying a map of similar design has been hanging in DC Councilman Jack Evans' office for a number of years, but received scant attention until 2008. Wyman, one of the original designers of the map, was confirmed as the layout specialist who would be redesigning the map by "The Washington Post" on June 4, 2011.


A thick-line version of the map, released as part of Metro's Rush Plus plan, showed the Silver Line spurring off the Orange Line between the Ballston and stations in a northwesterly direction, with five unlabeled stops (the Phase 1 stations). The final map released for the Silver Line's Phase 1 opening features the stations shared by the three lines as normal stations, with the dots signifying stations located on the colored line in the center and small white stubs extending from the center dots into the adjoining colored lines.


While construction of Phase 1 to Wiehle–Reston East was under way, the funding and planning of Phase 2 through Dulles Airport continued. This included the adoption of a special taxing district by the Town of Herndon and a public planning forum. Early cost estimates for Phase 2 had been $2.75 billion; however, a group of consultants increased the estimate in 2010 from $3.44 billion to $4.1 billion.


The extension of the Silver Line to Dulles and Loudoun County was in jeopardy until July 3, 2012, when the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors voted 5 to 4 to extend the line to Dulles Airport and into the county. On April 25, 2013, the Phase II contract was issued at a cost of $1.177 billion. On August 20, 2014, the United States Department of Transportation announced that Phase II would be funded with a $1.28 billion Transportation Infrastructure Financial Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan. This delivers part of an approximately $1.87 billion combined commitment of TIFIA loans for Phase II, which represents the largest TIFIA assistance for a single project in the program's history.


Cracks were discovered in some concrete support girders in July 2015, causing work to be temporarily halted. By July 2016, 30% of the Phase II project had been completed. The contractors reported that significant progress was made with regard to the structure of the line. By March 2017, completion of Phase II construction had reached 56% with work on the rail yard at Dulles Airport reaching 46%, 76% of deck spans being poured, and all aerial guideway girders over the Dulles Access Road near Saarinen Circle being set in place. MWAA reported that crews would soon begin installation of pedestrian bridges at the five stations under construction in the median of the Dulles Access Road and the Dulles Greenway.


Despite these controversies, progress of the extension's construction steadily approached completion throughout the rest of the year, reaching 78% in June, 86% in September and 92% by January 2019. A month later, it was deemed that the extension would be ready for testing that would last for several months, starting with two recently retired 5000 series railcars towed by a diesel to clean the third rail while it is disabled, before energizing it to allow for more dynamic train testing. Despite reports of trouble that prevented early test trains from going so far, testing eventually continued throughout the expansion and into Dulles Airport in March. The following month, progress of construction reached 95%.


By early February 2020, it was reported that construction was 98% complete. However, by the end of March 2020, while determining a budget for the 2020-2021 fiscal year (and having taken the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic into consideration), Metro re-evaluated the timetable for the second phase's launch and anticipated it would be ready for service on April 1, 2021.


From March 26, 2020 until June 28, 2020, trains were bypassing , , , , , , , , and stations due to the local impact of the coronavirus pandemic in the Washington D.C. area. All stations reopened on June 28, 2020.


In September 2020, the Metro Office of Inspector General (OIG) reported that more cracks were discovered in five of the six new stations on the second phase and wants the concrete panels to be replaced before the WMATA Board accepts responsibility and opens the new extension. In light of ongoing issues, as well as budget cuts resulting from declining ridership caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Metro pushed back the opening of the Phase 2 extension first to July 2021, and on December 15, 2020 to Fall of 2021.


On December 14, 2020, WMATA announced that Blue Line service will be suspended between February 13 to May 23, 2021 in order to rebuild the platforms at both and . Silver Line trains will run in place of the Blue Line every 12 minutes during the weekdays and 15 minutes on weekends while bypassing Addison Road. In early 2021, construction completion of Phase 2 reached 99 percent. As of March 2021, Phase 2 is projected to open to passenger service in early 2022.


Metro's new 7000-series cars were ordered at a price of $3 million per car, 64 of which are for Silver Line service. The contract was signed on July 2, 2010 for 428 cars.


Stations are listed by their approved names.


A study published in 2013 overseeing a long-term plan for the system included a possible three-station extension of the Silver Line northwest to Leesburg, which is the seat of Loudoun County. The stations from northwest to southeast are VA 7 Bypass, Crosstrail Blvd, and Belmont Ridge. The same study included either adding an infill station between Tysons Corner and McLean, or renaming the former, to allow transfer with a loop line that would parallel the Capital Beltway, named the "Beltway Line". This station would be named Beltway and 123.


In July 1998, TriMet projected the Airport MAX extension to cost $125 million (equivalent to $ in dollars). Additional costs to purchase train sets and build related infrastructure raised this total to $182.7 million (equivalent to $ in dollars). Under U.S. federal regulations, the Port of Portland was able to fund only the portion of rail located within its property with approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). To ensure funding, the Port proposed dividing the project's financing into three parts, which the involved parties agreed to. The Port became responsible for the segment within airport property. The next of track, which ran through Cascade Station, went to private funding. TriMet, Metro, and the City of Portland covered the final along I-205.


Track installation, which Bechtel contracted to Stacy and Witbeck, started in December 1999. To meet the project's deadline, workers placed of rail per day; tracks from Gateway Transit Center to the bridge over southbound I-205 were laid by July 2000. Hoffman Construction, the company selected by the Port to expand the airport terminal several years prior, built the $8.4 million Portland International Airport station. Local architecture firm Zimmer Gunsul Frasca (ZGF) designed the station's glass-roofed shelter to complement the airport terminal's then newly built drop-off canopy, which ZGF also designed. Bechtel began end-to-end testing of the power, trains, and signals in March 2001. TriMet took over the project that July to continue system testing and verify scheduling.


In October 2017, TriMet announced plans to extend the Red Line from Beaverton Transit Center to Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport station in Hillsboro. The $206 million "Better Red" project will create a one-seat option from Portland International Airport to ten existing stations westbound from Beaverton Transit Center and establish a transit link between the Portland and Hillsboro airports. The ten stations are: , , , , , Willow Creek/Southwest 185th Avenue Transit Center, , , , and Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport. Additionally, TriMet plans to add a second track to existing single-track segments between the Gateway and Parkrose/Sumner transit centers, and between the and Portland International Airport stations. To accommodate new riders, TriMet will purchase six new light rail vehicles and upgrade the Ruby Junction maintenance facility in Gresham.


Preliminary design work began in February 2018. The following month, the Hillsboro City Council authorized funds to study the effects of the extension on the existing MAX at-grade crossing at Southwest 185th Avenue. This may pave the way for grade separation in the future. TriMet adopted a locally preferred alternative in April 2019, allowing the agency to submit the plan to the FTA and request funding. On May 29, 2020, the FTA announced $99.99 million in funding for the project through the Capital Investment Grants program. Final design is expected to be completed in 2021. Construction is targeted to begin that same year and finish by 2024.


Portland International Airport station temporarily closed from March 29 to August 1, 2020, to make way for demolition and construction work as part of the airport's planned expansion of Concourse B. Initially targeted to reopen between May 30 and August 30, TriMet updated the schedule as a result of flight cancellations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The station closed for a second time on August 30 and will remain closed until January 2, 2021. During the closure, shuttle buses will carry riders from Mount Hood Avenue station to the passenger terminal. TriMet is utilizing the closures to prepare for track improvements that will be part of the Better Red project.


Although much of the Red Line runs along a double-track railway, two segments of the Airport MAX extension are single-tracked. The first segment starts near Gateway Transit Center and ends just north of Northeast Halsey Street. The other segment runs from south of the Northeast Airport Way and Northeast Airport Way Frontage Road intersection to just before the airport terminus. There are plans to add a second track to both segments by 2024 as part of the Better Red project.


On March 1, 2020, TriMet closed three stations served by the Red and Blue lines in an effort to speed up travel times in downtown Portland. The Mall stations were permanently closed while Kings Hill/Southwest Salmon Street station will remain closed for a trial period ending March 1, 2021.


The Orange Line (labeled as the Purple Line on maps prior to 2006) is a light rail line operated by the Dallas Area Rapid Transit system in Dallas, Irving, Richardson and Plano, Texas.


The line's current northwestern terminus is DFW Airport Station, located inside Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. The line proceeds southeast through Irving, providing service to the Irving Convention Center, Las Colinas, and the University of Dallas, before merging with the Green Line north of Bachman Station. The Orange Line shares the rest of its route with existing light rail lines, with stops along the Green Line from Bachman to Victory Station, through downtown Dallas on a corridor shared with the Green Line, Blue Line, and Red Line, and then northward along the Red Line corridor into Richardson and Plano.


Planned future Orange Line stations include Hidden Ridge Station between Irving Convention Center Station and North Lake College station, a DFW North Station loop, and an eastern extension down Scyene Road to Masters Drive (previously planned as a Green Line expansion).


The Orange Line was planned as an extension to the DART Light Rail system at least as early as 2006, when DART's 2030 System Plan described a "Northwest Corridor" route with expected revenue service to both Love Field and DFW Airport by 2013.


On March 12, 2007, the City of Dallas officials and DART made an agreement to make Love Field Station a surface-level facility, concluding a long debate over whether or not to make it an underground station closer to the airport.


On December 5, 2007, the "Dallas Morning News" ran a story reporting that DART President Gary Thomas said a previous cost estimate of $988 million was too low. The new cost estimate for the 14-mile project was $1.8 – $1.9 billion, he said. The $900 million overrun in costs caused considerable outrage among political leaders in Irving, Texas, the city the line runs through on its way to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. The Irving leaders conducted an inquiry into the cost overruns. Texas State Representative Linda Harper Brown sent an official letter to Mr. Thomas also inquiring about the project's cost overruns.


In February 2010 DART officials warned that the first two phases of the Orange Line might be delayed due to TXDOT problems along State Highway 114, which the Orange Line route follows. Utility relocation and road construction was expected to delay access to portions of the construction area where the rail line and highway intersect. DART estimated that the delay could push the opening of the Las Colinas extension from December 2011 to August 2012; however, DART also advised that it was determined to keep the original schedule and minimize any delays.


In June 2010, DART placed new Orange Line construction on indefinite hold due to declining revenue. However, on September 15, 2010, the agency said that due to cost savings and federal funds, the plans for the line have been revived.


On December 13, 2011, DART awarded a contract to design and build the Orange Line extension from Belt Line Road to DFW Airport, valued at about $150 million, with construction to start in early 2012 and an opening date of August 18, 2014, ahead of schedule.


The Orange Line started operation on December 6, 2010, with weekday peak service from the Parker Road station to Bachman station on stations shared with DART's Red and Green lines. The first Orange Line-exclusive stations opened with the extension to Irving Convention Center on July 30, 2012, and two more were added on December 3, 2012. The current northwestern terminus, located at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, opened on August 18, 2014. Hidden Ridge Station, which was planned with the rest of the Orange Line but deferred until further development justified its construction, opened to revenue service on April 12, 2021.


The K Line, scheduled to open in 2021, will be integrated with much of the current C Line, creating two separate lines. The C Line will operate along the current corridor between Willowbrook/Rosa Parks station and Redondo Beach station, while the K Line will run from Norwalk along the current C Line before turning onto the newly built infrastructure and terminating at Expo/Crenshaw station.


The C Line is the fastest light rail line in the Metro rail network, with trains typically operating at on the I-105 freeway portion. When the C Line began service in 1995, it operated with only one-car trains. As ridership increased, two-car trains were then used. Ridership on the C Line has not been as high as the A Line, although it did have a higher ridership than the L Line (Gold) until 2013. Although nearly all of the C Line stations were built to accommodate three-car trains, the C Line has never used trains consisting of more than two cars. The stations west of Aviation/LAX Station were not built to accommodate three-car trains. The line is also automated while operators control the doors.


Metro C Line trains run between approximately 3:30 a.m. and midnight daily, with a scheduled running time of 34 minutes from end to end. Service on Friday and Saturday nights continues until approximately 2:15 a.m. The C Line runs with one-car trains in the early mornings (3:35 A.M.–5:30 A.M.) and late evenings (9:00P.M.–12:55 A.M.).


Trains on the C Line operate every seven to eight minutes during peak hours Monday through Friday. They operate every 15 minutes during the midday and all day on the weekends, with night service running every 20 minutes.


The C Line consists of the following 14 stations (from west to east):


Various studies have suggested extending the C Line north to LAX, Westchester, Loyola Marymount University, and even Santa Monica. A possible southern extension could take the C Line's southern terminus farther southeast, to the South Bay Galleria or beyond. And on the line's east end, the line may one day be extended from its current terminus at Norwalk station to Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs station.


The Crenshaw/LAX Line project extends from the existing C Line, and the question of how the new segment would be integrated into the Metro Rail system was the subject of some controversy in 2018 as completion of the project loomed. Early proposals had suggested that a new line would operate between Expo/Crenshaw station in the north and Aviation/Century in the south, or possibly extend to Redondo Beach station once the stations west of Aviation/LAX station could accommodate 3-car trains, with the stretch southwest of the wye continuing to be served by the Metro C Line as well. An additional service would have connected Norwalk to the new Aviation/Century station and planned 96th Street Transit station and the Airport Metro Connector.


Metro is currently working on the initial environmental study of a corridor extension of the C Line from its Redondo terminus toward the southeast. The Green Line Extension to Torrance would roughly follow the Harbor Subdivision ROW into the South Bay, to the Torrance Regional Transit Center (RTC).


Metro and the public are considering two alternatives in the DEIR: an elevated light-rail extension, and an at-grade extension over existing tracks, with vehicle type still to be determined. Study of the South Bay Extension will lead to publication of a Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR). The study was expected to be completed in 2011. Project was placed on hold in Spring 2012 due to uncertain funding. With the passage of Measure M in 2016, $619 million was cited for the Green Line Extension south and the study resumed, which is currently scheduled for release in mid 2020 release. The study area includes the former Harbor Subdivisions right of way. The extension study includes the Redondo Beach station to the Torrance Transit Center, a extension study area.


According to the LA County Expenditure Plan (Measure M), groundbreaking for the project is currently scheduled for 2026, with expected opening in 2030–2033. The timeline is expected to be accelerated under the Twenty-eight by '28 initiative.


The C Line's eastern terminus suffers from the fact that it stops two miles (3 km) just short of the heavily used Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs Metrolink station, where several Metrolink lines operate. Local bus service is provided between the Metrolink station and the C Line terminus, but schedules are not coordinated with the C Line arrivals. While plans exist to close the gap, available Measure M funding allows for operation to start in roughly 2052.


The C Line is operated out of the Division 22 Yard (Hawthorne Yard) and the Division 16 Yard (Southwestern Yard). These yards stores the fleet used on the C line. Light maintenance is done on the fleet in Division 22 and heavier maintenance is done in Division 16. Division 22 is located between Redondo Beach and Douglas stations. Trains enter the yard via a junction halfway between the two stations. Norwalk-bound trains (Northbound) may enter but there is no exit track to continue North. Redondo Beach-bound trains (Southbound) may enter and exit the Yard to continue south. Division 16 is located on the completed section of the K Line near the future site of Aviation/96th Street in Westchester.


At the time the Green Line opened, the line used a fleet of Nippon Sharyo P2020 light rail vehicles, which were very similar to the older Nippon Sharyo P865 vehicles used on the Blue Line. In early 2002, the P2020 fleet was transferred to the Blue Line, and the Green Line received new Siemens P2000 railcars that have been operating on the line ever since. Kinkisharyo P3010 trains are also used. After 19 years, the P2020 briefly returned to the C Line to be retired. Trains are limited to two-car sets due to limitations at some stations along the line.


The Red Line runs from approximately 3:15 a.m. to 1:45 a.m. daily. Trains run approximately every 10 minutes during rush hours and approximately every 15 during all other times. (Service to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is provided by # 22 Lorain buses between 1:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m.)


The Red Line uses a fleet of 60 stainless-steel subway-type cars manufactured by Tokyu Car Corporation and delivered to RTA between 1984 and September 1985. The cars have three sets of doors on each side, one in the center and one at each end adjacent to the operator cab. The cars' exteriors originally had orange and red stripes along the sides, but these stripes were removed when RTA changed to a red, white and blue color scheme. Twenty of the cars are operable in single units, and they are numbered as 181-200. The other 40 cars are operable in pairs, and they are numbered as 301-340.


The current fleet of Red Line cars underwent an in-house rehabilitation under the direction of former director of rail Michael Couse. The cars were overhauled over the course of five years using federal grant money. Cars received pantographs and controllers, along with rebuilt trucks, traction motors, resistor banks, new flame-retardant flooring, LED lighting, new seat frames, revised interior paneling, and additional open space for improved ADA compliance. The first of the rebuilt cars was unveiled to the public on December 10, 2013.


When the extension to Hopkins Airport was being built in 1967, a fleet of 20 longer cars was purchased to supplement and replace the Blue Birds. These second generation cars, numbered as 151–170, were long and were built by Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company. The cars, which had a stainless steel exterior with red and white trim and featured interior luggage racks, were promoted as "Airporters." The Airporters supplanted the Blue Birds, except during rush hour when extra cars were needed. In 1970, ten additional Airporters were purchased, numbered as 171–180. With the purchase of the Tokyu cars in 1985, all Airporters and Blue Birds were retired.


The Red Line is prominently featured in the final scenes of the film "Proximity", starring Rob Lowe and James Coburn. The finale involves a hostage on a Red Line train and a gunfight and chase scene through the Tower City station.


The Red Line is the older and longer line of the MetroLink light rail service in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. It serves 28 stations in Greater St. Louis.


Transit planning along the Airport/Central Corridor began as early as 1971, when it was selected as the region's primary target for further study. In 1983, funding was approved to evaluate five mode alternatives, which culminated in a 1984 draft environmental impact statement. After a series of public hearings, the East–West Gateway Coordinating Council, a council composed of the region's local governments, adopted light rail as the preferred mode alternative.


The project's capital expense budget was $287.7million (equivalent to $ in dollars), which covered design and engineering, procurement, construction, and testing.


"From Lambert Airport to Shiloh-Scott (west to east)"


Some of these extensions will make the Red Line one of the longest light rail lines in the United States.


St. Clair County Extension Phase 3 - Shiloh-Scott to MidAmerica Airport: the St. Clair County Extension Phase III will extend to MidAmerica Airport. Although design work for the extension has been completed, funding for construction hasn't been secured. It was originally part of the St. Clair County Extension Phase II project that extended to Shiloh-Scott, but was separated into its own project by the Federal Transit Administration due to projections of low ridership. If this extension had been built, it would have been on this route alone.


Madison County Corridors - East St. Louis to Alton/Edwardsville: A study in 2005 was performed to investigate the potential costs, ridership, and impacts of extending Metrolink into Madison County, Illinois. According to the East-West Gateway Council of Governments, there are two recommended alignments for Madison County. Both of the alignments will start from the 5th & Missouri station out of East St Louis in St. Clair County to Granite City, Collinsville, Glen Carbon, Edwardsville, East Alton, Wood River, and Alton in Madison County, Illinois away. The alignments will junction off in Madison, Illinois into two alignments. In order to plan out the two alignments, Metro will have to collaborate with Madison County Transit.


St. Charles Corridor - Lambert Airport to St. Charles County: Possible plans to expand MetroLink from Lambert Airport northwestward to St. Charles County were abandoned after St. Charles County voters rejected a sales tax in 1996 to fund an extension; subsequently, all MetroBus service was ended. If the extension was funded, the route would have used the Old St. Charles Bridge (now demolished) as a crossing over the Missouri River to the City of St. Charles, St. Peters, and O'Fallon. In the near future, it may be considered a potential alignment to study.


AirTrain JFK is an elevated people mover system and airport rail link serving John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK Airport) in New York City. The driverless system operates 24/7 and consists of three lines and ten stations within the New York City borough of Queens. It connects the airport's terminals with the New York City Subway in Howard Beach, Queens, and with the Long Island Rail Road and the subway in Jamaica, Queens. Bombardier Transportation operates AirTrain JFK under contract to the airport's operator, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.


All passengers entering or exiting at either Jamaica or Howard Beach must pay a $7.75 fare, while passengers traveling within the airport can ride for free. The system was originally projected to carry 4 million annual paying passengers and 8.4 million annual inter-terminal passengers every year. The AirTrain has consistently exceeded these projections since opening. In 2019, the system had over 8.7 million paying passengers and 12.2 million inter-terminal passengers.


The first proposal for a direct rail link to JFK Airport was made in 1968, when the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) suggested extending the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) to the airport as part of the Program for Action, an ambitious transportation expansion program for the New York City area. Ultimately, the rail link was canceled altogether due to the New York City fiscal crisis of 1975. Another proposal, made by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in 1987, called for a rail line to connect all of JFK Airport's terminals with a new $500 million transportation center. The Port Authority withdrew its plans in 1990 after airlines objected that they could not fund the proposal.


The MTA operated the JFK Express, a premium-fare New York City Subway service that connected Midtown Manhattan to the Howard Beach–JFK Airport station, from 1978 to 1990. The route carried subway passengers to the Howard Beach station, where passengers would ride shuttle buses to the airport. The shuttle buses transported passengers between the different airport terminals within JFK's Central Terminal Area, as well as between Howard Beach and the terminals. The JFK Express service was unpopular with passengers because of its high cost, and because the buses often got stuck in traffic.


By the 1990s, there was demand for a direct link between Midtown Manhattan and JFK Airport, which are apart by road. During rush hour, the travel time from JFK to Manhattan could average up to 80 minutes by bus; during off-peak hours, a New York City taxi could make that journey in 45 minutes, while a bus could cover the same distance in an hour. The Port Authority, foreseeing economic growth for the New York City area and increased air traffic at JFK, began planning for a direct rail link from the airport to Manhattan. In 1991, the Port Authority introduced a Passenger Facility Charge (PFC), a $3 tax on every passenger departing from JFK, which would provide $120 million annually.


The Port Authority started reviewing blueprints for the JFK rail link in 1992. At the time, it was thought that the link could be partially open within six years. In 1994, the Port Authority set aside $40 million for engineering and marketing of the new line, and created an environmental impact statement (EIS). The project's budget had grown to $2.6 billion by that year. The EIS, conducted by the New York State Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), found the plan to be feasible, though the project attracted opposition from area residents and advocacy groups.


The Port Authority voted to proceed with the scaled-down system in 1996. Its final environmental impact statement (FEIS) for the JFK people mover, released in 1997, examined eight possibilities. Ultimately, the Port Authority opted for a light rail system with the qualities of a people mover, tentatively called the "JFK Light Rail System". It would replace the shuttle buses, running from the airport terminals to either Jamaica or Howard Beach. The FEIS determined that an automated system with frequent headways was the best design. According to "The New York Times", in the 30 years between the first proposal and the approval of the light rail system, 21 recommendations for direct rail links to New York-area airports had been canceled.


In 1999, the RPA published a report in which it recommended the construction of new lines and stations for the New York City Subway. The plan included one service that would travel from Grand Central Terminal to JFK Airport via the JFK Light Rail. Ultimately, the MTA rejected the RPA's proposal.


The Port Authority could only use the funds from the Passenger Facility Charge to make improvements that exclusively benefited airport passengers. As a result, only the sections linking Jamaica and Howard Beach to JFK Airport were approved and built, since it was expected that airport travelers would be the sole users of the system. The federal government approved the use of PFC funds for the new light rail system in February 1998. Some $200 million of the project's cost was not eligible to be funded from the PFC tax because, according to the FAA, the tax funds could not be used to pay for "any costs resulting from an over-designed system", such as fare collection systems.


Construction of the system began in May 1998. Most of the system was built one span at a time, using cranes mounted on temporary structures that erected new spans as they progressed linearly along the structures. Several sections were built using a balanced cantilever design, where two separate spans were connected to each other using the span-by-span method. The Jamaica branch's location above the median of the busy Van Wyck Expressway, combined with the varying length and curves of the track spans, caused complications during construction. One lane of the Van Wyck had to be closed in each direction during off-peak hours, causing congestion.


The route ran mostly along existing rights-of-way, but three commercial properties were expropriated and demolished to make way for new infrastructure. Members of the New York City Planning Commission approved the condemnation of several buildings along the route in May 1999 but voiced concerns about the logistics of the project. These concerns included the projected high price of the tickets, ridership demand, and unwieldy transfers at Jamaica.


The Port Authority predicted that the AirTrain's opening would create 118 jobs at JFK Airport. Service was originally planned to begin on the Howard Beach branch in October 2002, followed by the Jamaica branch in 2003, but was delayed because of several incidents during testing. In July 2002, three workers were injured during an AirTrain derailment, and in September 2002, a train operator died in another derailment. The National Transportation Safety Board's investigation of the second crash found that the train had sped excessively on a curve. As a result, the opening was postponed until June 2003, and then to December 17, 2003, its eventual opening date.


Southeast Queens residents feared the project could become a boondoggle, as the construction cost of the system had increased to $1.9 billion. Like other Port Authority properties, the AirTrain did not receive subsidies from the state or city for its operating costs. This was one of the reasons cited for the system's relatively high initial $5 fare, which was more than twice the subway's fare at the time of the AirTrain's opening.


Several projects were developed in anticipation of the AirTrain. By June 2003, a , 16-story building was being planned for Sutphin Boulevard across from the Jamaica station. Other nearby projects built in the preceding five years included the Jamaica Center Mall, Joseph P. Addabbo Federal Building, the Civil Court, and the Food and Drug Administration Laboratory and Offices. After AirTrain JFK began operations, Jamaica saw a boom in commerce. A 15-screen movie theater opened in the area in early 2004, and developers were also planning a 13-floor building in the area. A proposed hotel above the AirTrain terminal was canceled after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.


In 2004, the city proposed rezoning 40 blocks of Jamaica, centered around the AirTrain station, as a commercial area. The mixed-use "airport village" was to consist of of space. According to the RPA, the rezoning was part of a proposal to re-envision Jamaica as a "regional center" because of the area's high usage as a transit hub. During the average weekday, 100,000 LIRR riders and 53,000 subway riders traveled to or from Jamaica. In addition, the Port Authority had estimated that the AirTrain JFK would carry 12.4 million passengers a year.


Plans to extend the AirTrain to Manhattan were examined even before the system's opening. Between September 2003 and April 2004, several agencies, including the MTA and the Port Authority, conducted a feasibility study of the Lower Manhattan–Jamaica/JFK Transportation Project, which would allow subway or LIRR trains to travel directly from JFK Airport to Manhattan. The study examined forty alternatives, but the project was halted in 2008 before an environmental impact statement could be created.


On January 4, 2017, the office of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a $7–10 billion plan to renovate JFK Airport. As part of the project, the AirTrain JFK would either see lengthened trainsets or a direct track connection to the rest of New York City's transportation system, and a direct connection between the AirTrain, LIRR, and subway would be built at Jamaica station. Shortly after Cuomo's announcement, the Regional Plan Association published an unrelated study for a possible direct rail link between Manhattan and JFK Airport. Yet another study in September 2018, published by the MTA, examined alternatives for an LIRR rail link to JFK as part of a possible restoration of the abandoned Rockaway Beach Branch.


In July 2017, Cuomo's office began accepting submissions for master plans to renovate the airport. A year later, in October 2018, Cuomo released details of the project, whose cost had grown to $13 billion. The improvements included lengthening AirTrains as well as adding lanes to the Van Wyck Expressway.


AirTrain JFK connects the airport's terminals and parking areas with the Howard Beach and Jamaica stations. It is located entirely within the New York City borough of Queens. The system consists of three routes: two connecting the terminals with either the Howard Beach or Jamaica stations, and one route looping continuously around the central terminal area. It is operated by Bombardier under contract to the Port Authority.


The Howard Beach Train route (colored green on the official map) begins and ends at the Howard Beach–JFK Airport station, where there is a direct transfer to the New York City Subway's . It makes an additional stop at Lefferts Boulevard, where passengers can transfer to parking lot shuttle buses; the B15 bus to Brooklyn; and the limited-stop Q10 bus. The segment from Howard Beach to Federal Circle, which is about long, passes over the long-term and employee parking lots.


The Jamaica Station Train route (colored red on the official map) begins and ends at the Jamaica station, adjacent to the Long Island Rail Road platforms there. The Jamaica station contains a connection to the Sutphin Boulevard–Archer Avenue–JFK Airport station on the New York City Subway's . The AirTrain and LIRR stations contain transfers to the subway, as well as to ground-level bus routes. West of Jamaica, the line travels above the north side of 94th Avenue before curving southward onto the Van Wyck Expressway. The segment from Jamaica to Federal Circle is about long.


The Howard Beach Train and Jamaica Station Train routes merge at Federal Circle for car rental companies and shuttle buses to hotels and the airport's cargo areas. South of Federal Circle, the routes share track for and enter a tunnel before the tracks separate in two directions for the terminal loop. Both routes continue counterclockwise around the loop, stopping at Terminals 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, and 8 in that order. Connections to the Q3, Q10, and B15 local buses are available at Terminal 5. The travel time from either Jamaica or Howard Beach to the JFK terminals is about eight minutes.


The Airline Terminals Train (colored gold on the official map), an airport terminal circulator, serves the terminals. It makes a continuous clockwise loop around the terminals, operating in the opposite direction to the Howard Beach Train and Jamaica Station Train routes. The terminal-area loop is long.


Trains to and from Jamaica and Howard Beach were originally planned to run every two minutes during peak hours, with alternate trains traveling to each branch. The final environmental impact statement projected that trains in the central terminal area would run every ninety seconds. By 2014 actual frequencies were much lower: each branch was served by one train every seven to 12 minutes during peak hours. Trains arrived every 10 to 15 minutes on each branch during weekdays; every 15 to 20 minutes during late nights; and every 16 minutes during weekends.


All AirTrain JFK stations contain elevators and are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Each platform is long and can fit up to four cars. The stations include air conditioning, as well as platform screen doors to protect passengers and to allow the unmanned trains to operate safely. Each station also contains safety systems such as CCTV cameras, alarms, and emergency contact points, and is staffed by attendants.


All the stations have island platforms except for Federal Circle, which has a bi-level split platform layout. The Jamaica and Howard Beach stations are designed as "gateway stations" to give passengers the impression of entering the airport. There are also stations at Lefferts Boulevard, as well as Terminals 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, and 8. Three former terminals, numbered 3, 6, and 9, were respectively served by the stations that are now named Terminals 2, 5, and 8. The four stations outside the Central Terminal Area were originally designated with the letters A–D alongside their names; the letters were later dropped.


Except for Terminal 4, all stations in the airport are freestanding structures, and most are connected to their respective terminal buildings by an aerial walkway. Access to Terminal 2 requires passengers to use crosswalks at street level, while the Terminal 4 station is located inside the terminal building itself.


The AirTrain has a total route length of . The system consists of of single-track guideway viaducts and of double-track guideway viaducts. AirTrain JFK is mostly elevated, though there are short segments that run underground or at ground level. The elevated sections were built with precast single and dual guideway spans, while the underground sections used cut-and-cover, and the ground-level sections used concrete ties and ballast trackbeds. The single guideway viaducts carry one track each and are wide, while the double guideway viaducts carry two tracks each and are wide. Columns support the precast concrete elevated sections at intervals of up to . The elevated structures use seismic isolation bearings and soundproof barriers to protect from small earthquakes as well as prevent noise pollution.


The AirTrain runs on steel tracks that are continuously welded across all joints except at the terminals; the guideway viaducts are also continuously joined. Trains use double crossovers at the Jamaica and Howard Beach terminals in order to switch to the track going in the opposite direction. There are also crossover switches north and south of Federal Circle, counterclockwise from Terminal 8, and clockwise from Terminal 1.


The tracks are set at a gauge of . This enables possible future conversion to LIRR or subway use, or a possible connection to LIRR or subway tracks for a one-trip ride into Manhattan, since these systems use the same track gauge. AirTrain's current rolling stock, or train cars, are not able to use either LIRR or subway tracks due to the cars' inadequate structural strength and the different methods of propulsion used on each system. In particular, the linear induction motor system that propels the AirTrain vehicles is incompatible with the traction motor manual-propulsion system used by LIRR and subway rolling stock. If a one-seat ride is ever implemented, a hybrid-use vehicle would be needed to operate on both subway/LIRR and AirTrain tracks.


There are seven electrical substations. The redundancy allows trains to operate even if there are power outages at one substation. Since there are no emergency exits between stations, a control tower can automatically guide the train to its next stop in case of an emergency.


AirTrain JFK is free to use for travel within the terminal area, as well as at the Lefferts Boulevard station, which is located next to the long-term parking, and at the Federal Circle station, where there are car-rental shuttle buses and transfers to and from the airport hotels. Passengers entering or leaving the system only via the Jamaica or Howard Beach stations must pay using MetroCard.


AirTrain accepts pay-per-ride MetroCards for $7.75 for transiting through either the Jamaica or Howard Beach gates. The MetroCards are preloaded with monetary value and $7.75 is deducted for each use. Cash and other forms of payment are not accepted. A $1 fee is charged for any new MetroCards.


In addition, two types of AirTrain JFK MetroCards can be purchased from vending machines at Jamaica and Howard Beach. The 30-Day AirTrain JFK MetroCard costs $40 and can be used for unlimited rides on the AirTrain for 30 days after first use. The AirTrain JFK 10-Trip MetroCard costs $25 and can be used for ten trips on the AirTrain within 31 days from first use. Both cards are only accepted on the AirTrain, and one trip is deducted for each use of the 10-Trip MetroCard. Other types of unlimited MetroCards are not accepted on the AirTrain.


Transferring to the Q3, Q10, or B15 buses from Terminal 5, or to the subway at Howard Beach and Jamaica, requires an additional $2.75 fare, since the MTA does not offer free transfers from the AirTrain. Passengers pay a total of $10.50 if they transfer between the AirTrain and MTA subways or buses at either Howard Beach or Jamaica. Patrons transferring from the AirTrain to a Penn Station-bound LIRR train at Jamaica pay $18.50 during peak hours, or $12.25 during weekends, using the railroad's CityTicket program.


The fare to enter or exit at Howard Beach and Jamaica was originally $5, though preliminary plans included a discounted fare of $2 for airport and airline employees. The original proposal also called for fare-free travel between airport terminals, a recommendation that was ultimately implemented. In June 2019, the Port Authority proposed raising AirTrain JFK's fare to $7.75, and the fare increase was approved that September. The new fares took effect on November 1, 2019, representing the first fare raise in the system's history.


AirTrain JFK uses Bombardier Transportation's Innovia Metro rolling stock and technology. Similar systems are used on the SkyTrain in Vancouver, Line 3 Scarborough in Toronto, and the Kelana Jaya Line in Kuala Lumpur. The computerized trains are fully automated and use a communications-based train control system with moving block signals to dynamically determine the locations of the trains. AirTrain JFK is a wholly driverless system, and it uses SelTrac train-signaling technology manufactured by Thales Group. Trains are operated from and maintained at a train yard between Lefferts Boulevard and Federal Circle, atop a former employee parking lot. The system originally used pre-recorded announcements by New York City traffic reporter Bernie Wagenblast, a longtime employee of the Port Authority.


The 32 individual, non-articulated Mark II vehicles operating on the line draw power from a 750 V DC top-running third rail. A linear induction motor pushes magnetically against an aluminum strip in the center of the track. The vehicles also have steerable trucks that can navigate sharp curves and steep grades, as well as align precisely with the platform doors at the stations. The cars can run at up to , and they can operate on trackage with a minimum railway curve radius of .


Each car is long and wide, which is similar to the dimensions of rolling stock used on the New York City Subway's B Division. Trains can run in either direction and can consist of between one and four cars. The cars contain two pairs of doors on each side, with each door opening being wide. An individual car has 26 seats and can carry up to 97 passengers with luggage, or 205 without luggage. Because most passengers carry luggage, the actual operating capacity is between 75 and 78 passengers per car.


When AirTrain JFK was being planned, it was expected that 11,000 passengers per day would pay to ride the system between the airport and either Howard Beach or Jamaica, and that 23,000 more daily passengers would use the AirTrain to travel between terminals. This would amount to about 4 million paying passengers and 8.4 million in-airport passengers per year. According to the FEIS, the system could accommodate over 3,000 daily riders from Manhattan, and its opening would result in approximately 75,000 fewer vehicle miles ( kilometers) being driven each day.


During the first month of service, an average of 15,000 passengers rode the system each day. Though this figure was less than the expected daily ridership of 34,000, the AirTrain JFK had become the second-busiest airport transportation system in the United States. Within its first six months, AirTrain JFK had transported one million riders.


The AirTrain's ridership has risen each year since its opening. A "New York Times" article in 2009 observed that one possible factor in the AirTrain's increasing ridership was the $7.75 fare for AirTrain and subway, which was cheaper than the $52 taxi ride between Manhattan and JFK. In 2019, there were 8.7 million passengers who paid to travel between JFK Airport and either Howard Beach or Jamaica. This represents an increase of more than 300 percent from the 2.6 million riders who paid during the first full year of operation, 2004. An additional 12.2 million people are estimated to have ridden the AirTrain for free in 2019, placing total annual ridership at 20.9 million.


The South Shore Line is an electrically powered interurban commuter rail line operated by the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) between Millennium Station in downtown Chicago and the South Bend International Airport in South Bend, Indiana, United States. The name refers to both the physical line and the service operated over that route. The line was built in 1901–1908 by predecessors of the Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad, which continues to operate freight service. Passenger operation was assumed by the NICTD in 1989. The South Shore Line is one of the last surviving interurban trains in the United States.


The public Monday-Friday timetable shows 20 eastbound trains operating; 18 of those operate out of Millennium Station. Of those, five terminate at Adam Benjamin Metro Center in Gary, seven at South Bend Airport, and 10 at Carroll Avenue station in Michigan City. Two daily trains begin at Carroll Avenue and continue to South Bend Airport.


Westbound, 16 trains operate, with seven originating in South Bend (including one rush-hour express to Millennium Station) and nine originating at Carroll Avenue. Of these, 14 terminate at Millennium Station, while two run from South Bend to Carroll Avenue.


The South Shore Line was constructed between 1901 and 1908 by the Chicago and Indiana Air Line Railway (reorganized as the Chicago, Lake Shore and South Bend Railway [CLS&SB] in 1904). Revenue service between Michigan City and South Bend began on July 1, 1908. The CLS&SB leased the Kensington and Eastern Railroad on April 4, 1909, giving it access to Chicago. That year the full line to Kensington on the Illinois Central was completed, and beginning on June 2, 1912, the electric cars were coupled to IC steam locomotives and run to downtown Chicago.


The power system was changed from 6600 volts AC to 1500 volts DC on July 28, 1926, allowing trains to operate directly to the Illinois Central Railroad's Randolph Street Terminal (now Millennium Station) without an engine change. Trains began running to Randolph Street on August 29. That same year, the original line between East Chicago and Indiana Harbor was abandoned.


The Chicago South Shore and South Bend turned a profit during World War II due to the industrial nature of Northern Indiana. However, highway competition and suburban growth led to ridership declines. By the 1950s all interurban lines were seeing a decline in rail travel as automobile use increased. On September 16, 1956, a street running section in East Chicago was removed with the building of a new alignment alongside the Indiana Toll Road. A truncation to west of downtown South Bend removed street trackage in that city from July 1, 1970.


The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway acquired the CSS&SB on January 3, 1967 and continued the operation of passenger services. The Chicago South Shore and South Bend was one of six railroads with long-distance passenger services to decline joining Amtrak in 1971 and in 1976, they asked the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) to abandon passenger service. The ICC gave the state of Indiana a chance to reply and subsequently, the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) was formed in 1977 to subsidize service.


In the late 1980s, the Chicago South Shore and South Bend went bankrupt and on December 29, 1989, passenger service was assumed by NICTD. In December 1990, the track was sold to NICTD and freight service was taken over by the new Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad, a subsidiary of short line operator Anacostia & Pacific. On November 21, 1992, the line's South Bend terminus moved from the Amtrak station to the airport. On July 5, 1994, NICTD closed the Ambridge, Kemil Road, Willard Avenue, LaLumiere, Rolling Prairie, and New Carlisle flag stops. A seventh station, Dune Acres, closed around the same time once parking was expanded at nearby Dune Park.


The railroad began a three-year project in 2009 to replace all catenary on its line between Michigan City and Gary, some of which was nearly 90 years old. The project cost $18 million, and caused service disruptions on weekends while new wires were strung.


The Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program (CREATE), replaced a bridge on the South Shore Line across 130th Street, Torrence Avenue, and Norfolk Southern tracks in the Hegewisch neighborhood of Chicago as a part of a four-year project lasting from 2011 to 2015. The 2,350 ton bridge would be put in place in August 2012.


In 2015 NICTD began an express service between South Bend and Chicago. Targeted at business travelers, the train makes just two intermediate stops: Dune Park and East Chicago. The total scheduled travel time is 1 hour 55 minutes, more than thirty minutes faster than existing services.


In July 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, NICTD implemented "mask optional cars" for riders choosing not to wear masks, as Indiana did not have a statewide mask mandate. This has received controversial reception, as it does not help slow down the spread of the coronavirus disease, and the "mask optional" car is also the only car with bike racks. On November 14, 2020, the "mask optional cars" were discontinued, requiring all passengers to wear a mask.


Departing South Bend Airport, the South Shore Line heads south alongside Bendix Drive, then west along Westmoor Street, before connecting with the tracks that ran to its former terminus. Between that point and Hudson Lake, Indiana, the South Shore Line runs parallel to Norfolk Southern's Chicago Line, also used by Amtrak's "Lake Shore Limited" and" Capitol Limited", on the north side of the tracks. Just before Hudson Lake, the line crosses from St. Joseph County into LaPorte County and enters the Central Time Zone.


The line is quadruple tracked along the section shared with the Metra Electric line from Millennium Station to Kensington/115th Street, double-tracked from Kensington/115th Street to east of Gary Metro Center. From there it is single-tracked with passing sidings to South Bend Airport, save for a stretch of double track around Ogden Dunes and the yard at Michigan City. On January 7, 2021, an agreement was announced between the Federal Transit Administration and the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District to double-track an additional between Gary and Michigan City at an estimated total cost of $491 million, including improvements to grade crossings and upgrades to five stations.


The South Shore Line operates with a fleet of 82 rail cars built between 1982 and 2009 by Nippon Sharyo. The fleet consists of 58 single-level self-propelled cars, 10 single-level unpowered trailers, and 14 bilevel self-propelled cars. The single level fleet's design shares commonalities with MARC's locomotive-hauled MARC II fleet, which were also built by Nippon Sharyo. An additional 26 cars are planned to be acquired, replacing those to be transferred to West Lake Corridor services.


Pullman-Standard and the Standard Steel Car Company delivered electric multiple units to the CSS&SB between 1926 and 1929. Many were lengthened in the 1940s and 1950s.


Since 2005, there has been an ongoing debate pertaining to plans to relocate trackage off the streets of Michigan City. In July 2009, NICTD announced its intention to relocate the Michigan City track south of its current location in order to smooth out the curves, cut down the number of grade crossings, increase speed and reduce maintenance costs. The plan also calls for the replacement of both current stations with a single new station located a block west of the current 11th Street boarding location (between Franklin and Washington streets) with a modern, high-level platform and parking lot. The plan would require a demolition of residential and retail buildings currently located on the south side of 11th Street.


At a legislative hearing in October 2008, NICTD officials said they would drop further study of a Munster-to-Valparaiso route, and begin study of a Gary–Valparaiso route. At the hearing, NICTD officials said the projected cost of $673 million for the Munster-to-Valparaiso route as well as low projected ridership would have made it ineligible for federal funding and opted to study the Gary-to-Valparaiso route instead. The Gary-to-Valparaiso route would utilize the partially abandoned former Pennsylvania Railroad line. NICTD officials contend the shorter length of a Gary-to-Valparaiso run and the chance to use existing tracks there may make it a lower-cost alternative to the Munster-to-Valparaiso route.


In the 1980s and 1990s, there was some discussion about the possibility of extending the line from South Bend east to Elkhart County, Indiana. In 1988, Elkhart, Indiana mayor James Perron pushed for the government to look into making long-term plans for an extension into his city. It is analogous of Metra Electric Line extension to Kankakee.


NICTD planned to apply for federal funding for a preliminary engineering study and environmental survey of a Hammond-to-Lowell leg in 2009. , that leg had a projected price tag of $551 million. , the cost has increased to $665 million. NICTD was awarded funding in the spring of 2020 and the line broke ground in October 2020. The project is estimated to open to revenue service in 2025.


The new line will run through Munster to Dyer, with a possible later extension to St. John, and trains will run as shuttles between Hammond and Dyer during off-peak hours. The alignment of the new branch leaves the old CSS&SB main immediately before the current Hammond station. Hence, the NICTD has decided to build a new station in Hammond to serve both branches.


The line operates over the tracks of the Metra Electric Line from Millennium Station to Kensington-115th Street. Metra owns the track in this territory. Per a long-standing non-compete clause with Metra, outbound South Shore Line trains to Indiana only stop at Metra Electric stations to receive passengers; inbound trains to Millennium Station only stop at Metra Electric stations to discharge passengers.


South Shore Line trains make the following station stops:


The Pacific Surfliner is a passenger train service serving the communities on the coast of Southern California between San Diego and San Luis Obispo.


The service carried 2,924,117 passengers during fiscal year 2016, a 3.4% increase from FY2015. Total revenue during FY2016 was $73,020,267, an increase of 3.6% over FY2015. The "Pacific Surfliner" is Amtrak's third-busiest service (exceeded in ridership only by the "Northeast Regional" and "Acela Express"), and the busiest outside the Northeast Corridor.