WASHINGTON – Maryland
Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and
Barbara A. Mikulski today announced that the Baltimore Light Rail system will receive a grant of more than $12.1 million toward final federal funding to double track the system.

“With ever increasing congestion of our highways, we need to do all we can to encourage people to use public transportation,” said Senator Cardin. “The Light Rail system is a critical part of Baltimore's mass transportation system, and it has been a wise investment to improve it by double tracking the system,” said Sen. Cardin.

“I fight every year for federal investments that help keep Marylanders on the move,” said Senator Mikulski, a senior member of the Transportation, Treasury, the Judiciary, and Housing and Urban Development (TTHUD) Appropriations Subcommittee. “More money for Maryland public transit systems means safer and faster commutes to work, better air quality, jobs today and jobs tomorrow.”

Baltimore's Light Rail system consists of more than 29 miles of railway, stretching from Hunt Valley in Baltimore County to Glen Burnie in Anne Arundel County. There are 32 stations on the line, including Penn Station, Camden Yards, and Thurgood Marshall-BWI International Airport. The Light Rail system has a daily ridership of 30,000.

The final leg of double tracking from Baltimore City to Hurt Valley was completed in 2006.