A groundbreaking ceremony in Sacramento on October 12 marked the start of construction on the first 1·8 km segment of the California state capital's Downtown — Natomas — Airport light rail extension.
The US$44m project, now designated as the Green Line, will run north along 7th Street from the H Street, where it diverges from the existing spur to the Amtrak station. The route mostly runs through undeveloped land and former railway yards to a new station at Richards Boulevard in Township 9. This site will ultimately have around 2 300 residential units plus offices and retail units.
The initial section of the Green Line is being built now because the city has money available; it is scheduled to open for revenue service in November 2010. The next segment is projected to open in 2014 at the earliest, followed three years later by the final link to the airport, which lies northwest of the city centre.
