ST. PAUL, MN –  Today the Office of the Legislative Auditor released a Special Review of the budget, timeline, and scope of the Southwest Light Rail Transit (LRT) project.

The letter from OLA summarizing the Special Review reads: Since 2011, the cost of the Southwest LRT project has more than doubled, and the line’s opening date has been delayed by nine years. More than $500 million of the project’s estimated $2.74 billion budget is currently unfunded, and the Metropolitan Council—the agency responsible for overseeing the design, engineering, construction, and future operation of the light rail line—has not yet identified a funding source.

Three factors have been key drivers of project delays and cost increases: (1) uncertainty about the final location of freight rail along the project’s alignment, (2) the construction of a light rail tunnel in Minneapolis’s Kenilworth Corridor, and (3) the need for a concrete barrier wall between freight rail and light rail traffic along a portion of the alignment.

Senator Scott Neman released the following statement in response to the Special Review:

“The OLA review gives me no confidence the Met Council or Hennepin County are properly managing the Southwest Light Rail project. While some cost overruns and delays can be expected with big projects, a doubling of the cost and nearly a decade of delays are unprecedented. I’m very concerned the required contingency account, used to pay for unanticipated costs, was nearly drained and backfilled with $200 million taxpayers’ dollars while their current guess is $500 million in additional funding – nearly 20% of the project – will be needed.  

“The Met Council, entirely appointed by the Governor, has horribly mismanaged this project. The Hennepin County Commissioners are subjecting their taxpayers to a massive tax increase. The Governor and those Commissioners are responsible for this unprecedented misuse of public funds and must be held accountable.” 

Today’s Special Review follows a 2021 Special Review of a disagreement between the Met Council and the Southwest LRT project design coordinator. A program evaluation of the Southwest LRT project is scheduled to be released in 2023.