Just weeks after work on the Purple Line ground to a halt in the wake of a bitter, years-long financial dispute, the state Department of Transportation announced on Friday that it has assumed numerous key construction contracts.
The move is the first tangible sign that MDOT intends to make good on its promise to jump-start the 16.5-mile project, despite the demise of the agency’s relationship with the financing consortium, Purple Line Transit Partners, and its primary subcontractor, Purple Line Transit Constructors, last month.
Despite the assumption of contracts, the state’s Transportation secretary insisted that MDOT is “committed” to ongoing negotiations to bring PLTP back to the project. A dispute over nearly $800 million in cost overruns led the firm to exercise its right to walk away with the line partially built.
The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) officially took over day-to-day management of the project on Sept. 28. MDOT senior official Matthew Pollack is now serving as Purple Line executive director for the agency.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Bruce DePuyt over at the Maryland Matters
