Plans for the 'Loop Trolley' in St. Louis Threatened by High Costs

"nextSTL has learned that bids to construct the long planned Loop Trolley have come in $11M above budget, threatening to permanently derail the project, according to Alex Ihnen. "The amount is more than 25% above the trolley’s $43M stated budget. Current plans call for the project to be re-bid without substantial reengineering."

Earlier in the project's planning history, a federal grant of $22 million was almost rescinded dude to lack of progress on the project. Now it looks like city officials are beginning to plan for the death of the project altogether. According to Ihnen, "nextSTL has learned that other partners are beginning to plan for the financial fallout if the project is never built. Efforts are underway to explore whether the $22M federal grant could be reassigned to another project within the St. Louis region. Meanwhile, supporters of the Loop Trolley are hoping additional federal funds will be made available."