Finally Laying Rail On The METRORail Southeast Line

Been keeping close tabs on the construction of the new METRORail Southeast Line since it will terminate less than a few blocks from where I currently live.  I've also expressed my feelings concerning how happy I am to see a rail component in our transit system come to life in my hometown. 

When METRO was created in the late 70's a heavy rail subway system was part of the plans and on the drawing boards.    It has been a contentious political issue fought over ever since then and while I preferred the original heavy rail plan, I'm just happy my hometown has any rail component in its transit plans.  

While I was recently out and about I noticed the 80 foot sections of rail near the intersection of Martin Luther King Blvd and Old Spanish Trail stacked in a staging area across the street from MacGregor Park.  The same thing has been occurring at other spots along the Southeast Line corridor and I wondered if the construction had finally progressed to the point in the line building process to where they were ready to start laying some track.

Got the answer to the question I was pondering on July 5 when a press conference was held to announce that workers were beginning the process of welding those 80 foot sections of rail to create 480 foot strips.   Those strips would then be laid into a reinforced concrete roadbed that would eventually stretch across the entire length of the Southeast Line.   The press conference was also marking the moment that rail was actually being laid for one of the additional lines approved by voters in 2003.  

METRO recently received another $150 million from the feds to facilitate construction of the North and Southeast Lines, and this news combined with the announcement they are at track laying stage is welcomed.

It's about time the Southeast Line is now getting to the point that the residents and businesses along the line are starting to see the construction peeps lay track for a change instead of it looking like a straight road building and widening project.

Now if they can complete it before 2014, that would really make me and every business on the Southeast Line happy.