Senator Julia Coleman, chair of the Legislative Commission on Metropolitan Governance, made the following statement today following the commission’s Wednesday, Jan. 26, meeting, which focused on the Southwest Light Rail project.

“The Southwest Light Rail project continues to experience delay after delay and cost Minnesotans even more money. This project was originally authorized at $2.2 billion and expected to be completed in 2023. Now, this project is not anticipated to open until 2027 and with a final cost of approximately $2.75 billion. 

“The lack of transparency by the Metropolitan Council is unacceptable and their ongoing evasiveness to real, important questions is problematic. Furthermore, the third-party contractor overseeing this project continues to express strong concerns with the quality of build and timeframe.

“We need to be the best public stewards of taxpayer dollars, and I will work to get the facts and clarify the many concerns raised. I am committed to ensuring future infrastructure projects aren’t conducted with the same poor level of transparency and disregard for taxpayer dollars. I also plan to bring forward solutions to address the problems we are experiencing now.”