If you're skeptical about construction of the M-1 Rail getting underway, you're not a lone.
There have been delays and debates and changes made to the plan in a city -- or for that matter, a region -- that has not exactly shown a great appetite for mass transit.
But Leonard Fleming of the Detroit News reports that the M-1 Rail project "is inching closer to reality, organizers say, with a groundbreaking planned this summer that will rebuild a portion of Woodward Avenue and add sleek streetcars."
Officials aren't giving an official starting date for the 3.3 mile rail from Adams past West Grand Blvd., but they say they're down to a couple vendors to build the street cars, the News reports.
At 3.3 miles, it's a baby step. After all, the People Mover is 2.9 miles long. At one point there was talk of extending it to 8 Mile Road.
“Once it’s up and running, it will be over the top,” Paul Childs, chief operating officer of the project, which will have 12 stops and 20 stations (at four stops, trains in both directions will share a station) told the News. “We’re confident about that.” -- Allan Lengel
