The U.S. House of Representatives has removed $200 million earmarked for the Inglewood Transit Connector, a $2 billion automated people mover connecting the Metro K line to SoFi Stadium and the Intuit Dome, from its version of the Department of Transportation budget, potentially putting the future of the project in jeopardy.
The shift came just days after local Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Los Angeles, wrote to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and ranking members of the House Appropriations Committee to express her strong opposition to the project and to ask Buttigieg to reject its funding.
The 1.6-mile automated system running from Market Street and Florence Avenue to Prairie Avenue and Hardy Street will cost “$1.261 billion per mile of transit built and more than $672 million for each of the three stations,” Waters wrote in her July 8 letter.
The project “is not designed to benefit the local community and it will not provide convenient connectivity to employment or public services for residents,” she wrote.
“Instead, the ITC is designed primarily to allow public transit users to connect the extra 1.6 miles from Metro’s K Line to sports and entertainment venues,” Waters said. “Shuttle buses could most likely accomplish the same goal at a fraction of the cost, but have not been seriously considered as an alternative.”
Waters did not respond to requests for an interview, though her office did provide a copy of her letter. She recently told the Los Angeles Times she intends to do anything she can to stop the project, calling it “totally unnecessary and totally much too costly.”
Inglewood wants to begin construction on the automated people mover next year and is aiming for a 2028 opening to coincide with the Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Inglewood is hosting the opening ceremonies and swimming at SoFi Stadium, as well as basketball at the Intuit Dome, which will be the new home of the Los Angeles Clippers.
But that timeline is contingent…
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