The Washington suburbs are getting their first true light rail. The Purple Line runs 16 miles across the top of the region, connecting Bethesda to New Carrollton without passing through the District, and tying together four Metro branches it never directly linked.
Project Scope
The line carries 21 stations and 28 light-rail vehicles across Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, with surface running, short tunnel sections and new bridges. It’s delivered as a public-private partnership: the Maryland Transit Administration owns it, Purple Line Transit Partners holds the concession, and Maryland Transit Solutions is the design-build contractor that took over after an earlier team walked off. Track is essentially complete, and the project is in its final testing stretch toward a late-2027 opening.
Why It Matters
The Purple Line has become a case study in how hard P3 transit can be. Lawsuits, a contractor change and renegotiation pushed the lifetime cost past $9 billion and the opening years late. It’s also a genuinely useful line, connecting job centers and Metro stations that today only a bus links. For another major Maryland rail job, see the Frederick Douglass Tunnel. More from Purple Line MD.
Project Team & Details
| Developer | Purple Line Transit Partners |
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| Owner / Client | Maryland Transit Administration |
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| General Contractor | Maryland Transit Solutions |
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| Status | Under Construction |
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| Delivery Method | Public-Private Partnership (P3) |
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| Funding Source | Public-Private Partnership (P3) |
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