The delivery of Maryland’s long-awaited Purple Line has been pushed back again, while cost overruns have ballooned the light-rail project’s price tag to more than $9.4 billion.
The Maryland Transit Administration said Friday it has requested the state Board of Public Works approve a contract extension with Purple Line Transit Partners, the consortium of contractors overseeing construction. That extension pushes the opening of the 16.2-mile, 21-stop line connecting New Carrollton and Bethesda to spring 2027 — about six months later than the last estimate — and adds more than $148 million its price tag.
The transit administration said the latest change in schedule is related a variety of factors, including the “challenges and complexities of completing construction” in an urban environment as well as ongoing workforce and supply chain issues. It also cited the project’s history, where a design-build contractor walked off the job in 2022 amid disputes with the state over cost overruns. As a result, Purple Line construction sites sat dormant for nearly two years — creating “unexpected conditions” — before another contractor was selected, the transit administration said.
“We understand the impacts that prolonged construction creates for the residents and businesses along the Purple Line alignment and will continue to minimize disruptions where possible,” Purple Line Project Director Ray Biggs said in a statement.