This morning, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx announced nearly $1.5 billion in federal grants and loans to build the second phase of the Metro Purple Line extension between Beverly Hills and Century City.

Construction for the first segment of the extension broke ground in 2014, and will push the Purple Line an additional 3.9 miles west from its current terminus at Wilshire Boulevard and Western Avenue, adding new stations at Wilshire/La Brea, Wilshire/Fairfax and Wilshire/La Cienega.  Phase two will extend service another 2.6 miles, creating new stops at Wilshire/Rodeo in downtown Beverly Hills and at Constellation Boulevard and Avenue of the Stars in Century City.

The new federal money is split between a $1.187-billion FTA New Starts grand and a $307-million loan through the U.S. Department of Transportation's low-interest TIFIA program.  Additional funding for the $2.4-billion project will be provided through a separate $169 federal grant, and $747 million from L.A. County's Measure R sales tax.

Some preconstruction activities for the project are already underway, and heavy construction is expected to begin in 2018.  Although completion of the project is anticipated no later than 2026, that timeline may be accelerated following the passage of Measure M, as well as in anticipation of a potential 2024 Summer Olympic Games.

Other work on the subway extension includes a new turnback facility within the Division 20 maintenance yard.

Following the completion of a third and final leg of the extension, which would terminate at Veterans Administration campus in Westwood, the Purple Line is expected to carry nearly 50,000 daily passengers with trains running every four minutes at peak hours.