Detroit News: LaHood to Grant $25 Million to M-1 Rail at Auto Show

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The Detroit News is reporting that US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood will be visiting the Detroit Auto Show on January 18th to announce $25 million in federal funding for Midtown Detroit's M-1 Rail.  Readers may remember a similar announcement in February 2010.  However, that funding was reallocated to a bus rapid transit system.  Returning the funding to light rail hinged on the progress of a Regional Transit Authority (RTA), which the Michigan legislature created in December's lame duck session.

According the the project website, the M-1 rail line will:
  • Have 11 stops from the Riverfront to the New Center area
  • Stations will be wheel-chair accessible and fully lit,  have a closed-circuit security system, emergency phone and covered ticket vending machine
  • Each light rail car stops every seven to eight minutes during peak hours and every 12 to 13 minutes during off-peak hours
  • Vehicles seat 60 passengers with the capacity to carry 149
  • The light rail will be equipped with a heating, ventilation and air conditioning system