I read that the Red Line will be about 14 miles long which totals to 24,640 yards or 73,920 feet. And the proposed light-rail line will cost Maryland taxpayers somewhere between $3 billion and $7 billion. At the low end, this means over $120,000 per yard or $40,000 per foot.
Yes, that’s $40,000 for every 12 inches including right-of-way, track, tunnels, cars and maintenance facilities. And that is the low-ball estimate (“It’s still not too late to choose the right course for the Red Line,” Nov. 3)!
Why is the cost so high? Those same billions could easily buy a thousand of the increasingly popular electric buses along with driver and security guard salaries and maintenance costs for many years. These buses should run on express lanes in existing roadways. I never see that option in the papers. I only see the light rail option.
The state should be looking at ways to reduce the cost of this project since it claims to be running out of money. What happened to the $5 billion budget surplus that it had at the start of last year?
— Rick Wiker, Sykesville
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