Downtown LA Subway Project Delayed By A Year

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Officials say a planned subway project that will connect three rail lines in downtown Los Angeles will be delayed by a year, despite efforts to make up for time lost during construction.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority says the new opening date for the Regional Connector is December 2021 — six months after the deadline established by federal officials and a year after the agency's target date of December 2020.

The Los Angeles Times reports Thursday that the schedule change will not jeopardize $830 million in federal funding for the project.

The newspaper says aging water pipes and old, fragile utility lines required reinforcement before crews could safely dig beneath them. Cost overruns for utility work, consultants, land acquisition and legal fees have twice prompted Metro to approve budget increases.

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