State Releases Purple Line Request for Proposals

The Maryland Department of Transportation/Maryland Transit Administration (MDOT/MTA) has announced it is seeking a private-sector team to design, build, construct, finance, operate and maintain the Purple Line during a 35-year contract term. In the two-step procurement process, firms that previously submitted qualifications have been narrowed down to four teams who are now eligible to submit proposals that are due on January 9, 2015.

The Purple Line is a 16-mile light rail line that will run east/west inside the Capital Beltway between Bethesda in Montgomery County and New Carrollton in Prince George’s County. Twenty-one stations are planned to provide direct connections to Metrorail’s Orange Line, Green Line and two branches of the Red Line, and the MARC Brunswick, Camden and Penn lines. Estimated ridership by 2040 is expected to be more than 74,000 people a day.

Following RFP proposal submissions, MDOT/MTA will select a preferred partner in Spring 2015 and recommend the final agreement to the Board of Public Works for its review and approval. Construction of the new Purple Line could then start in 2015.

(Source: MDOT)