Woodward Light Rail Project Derailed

DETROIT (WJBK) - The Woodward light rail project has been derailed. Now, it's out with the trains and in with a new, federally backed bus system. However, some fear the death of the light rail could impact other projects outside Detroit.

"The rail line going up Woodward Avenue was from Jefferson to Eight Mile -- 9.3 miles. That's just in Detroit, and it doesn't speak to regional transportation," said Detroit Mayor Dave Bing.

That is exactly why he, Governor Rick Snyder and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood have agreed now is not the time for the Woodward light rail line.

Carmine Palombo is the head of SEMCOG, an agency in the middle of its own rail project, and even he didn't see this coming.

"There had been noises about that in the past, but I was still pretty surprised it was being done that directly," he said.

The new plan is to create a regional transportation system made up of high speed buses that will efficiently link the city to the suburbs.

"We can provide better service to a lot more people for the same amount of money if we do it with bus rapid transit," Palombo explained.

However, will killing Detroit's light rail line jeopardize other plans in the works? Right now, SEMCOG is testing a rail line between Ann Arbor and Detroit. That plan doesn't need federal dollars yet, but just two months ago the Department of Transportation gave SEMCOG a $2 million grant to study the possibility of a rail line on Woodward from Eight Mile to 15 Mile.

"Federal Transit Administration personnel sort of gave us a hint that this was coming late yesterday and wanted to have a meeting with us," Palombo said.

He already has a pretty good idea of what he'll hear.

"I think we're going to hear, as they said today, that they're going to support bus rapid transit. I think we're going to talk about perhaps a corridor that extends beyond the City of Detroit and probably having to do a bit more work to justify where we're at in their eyes," said Palombo.