Big Transit Projects To Look Forward to in 2022

With many major transportation projects delayed in 2021, transit agencies hope 2022 will yield more promising results. Projects that did launch last year include: light rail expansions in San Diego and Charlotte; dedicated bus lanes and bus rapid transit in Boston and Minneapolis; new and expanded tramways in Brussels and Paris; an expansion of London's Underground.

To make sense of the  22 new "fixed-guideway" projects slated to open around the country this year, Yonah Freemark, in an annual tradition, lists all of the transit projects underway in the U.S., and some from around the world.  

The biggest US project opening this year, or at least the most expensive, is the East Side Access project, a new tunnel for Long Island Rail Road trains to journey from Queens into Grand Central Terminal. The more than $11 billion project, expected to open in December, will save commuters to East Midtown from Nassau and Suffolk Counties huge amounts of time–if they ever make their way back to the office.

In the source article, Freemark details the projects in heavy rail, light rail, streetcars, bus rapid transit (BRT), and commuter rail on deck for 2022 openings, along with the costs and mileages associated with each project. Notably, there are nine BRT projects planned for 2022 openings, along with four light rail lines or extensions and two major heavy rail projects in Honolulu and the Washington, D.C. region.