LAs $2.4B light rail project promises to relieve brutal stretch of SoCal traffic by 2031

Los Angeles taxpayers are being forced to shell out $3.6 billion for a new light-rail line through the San Fernando Valley, and they will not even get to ride it during the 2028 Olympics.The East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project began construction in July 2026, but trains are not expected to start running until December 2031.The 6.7-mile line will run along Van Nuys Boulevard, with 11 new stations serving Panorama City, Arleta and Pacoima.The project was once being pushed toward a 2027 opening, which would have put the trains on the tracks in time for Los Angeles’ 2028 Olympic Games.That deadline is now toast.Major design changes and utility relocation delays pushed the projected opening back to December 2031, leaving Valley residents to watch the Olympics come and go without the taxpayer-funded rail line they were supposed to have.And taxpayers are footing the bill at virtually every level.The $3.6 billion project is being financed entirely through public funding from local, state and federal sources.LA County taxpayers are contributing through Measure M, the half-cent sales tax approved by county voters and used by LA Metro.California taxpayers are also helping pay through the state’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program, along with gas-tax revenues.California's top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.

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Never miss a story Then there is Washington.The Federal Transit Administration awarded LA Metro an $893 million Full Funding Grant Agreement in 2024, using nationwide tax revenues through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.The construction contract awarded by LA Metro to Skanska and Stacy Witbeck in a joint venture is worth $2.43 billion, including preconstruction and early-works.For that mountain of money, the project will deliver a street-level light-rail line ...