As it prepares to launch construction this year on its $1.37 billion Regional Connector Project, Los Angeles Metro has received a $670 million FTA Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) to help finance the project.

FTA Deputy Administrator Therese McMillan took part in the recent FFGA signing event, along with Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Reps. Xavier Becerra (D-CA) and Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), and Los Angeles Mayor and Metro Board Vice Chair Eric Garcetti.

The project, due for completion in 2020, will build an underground connection between existing light rail lines: the Metro Gold Line in Little Tokyo and the Exposition and Blue lines, which currently terminate at Flower and 7th Streets. It will also reconfigure Metro’s three existing light rail lines into two lines, one primarily running north-south and the other east-west.

“The Regional Connector will improve the quality of LA’s light rail service by offering a one-seat ride that cuts travel times from Long Beach to Azusa and from East Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley to Santa Monica,” McMillan said at the event. “The traffic gridlock of Los Angeles has been the roadblock for many residents who need better, more reliable access to the jobs and educational opportunities offered across the metropolitan area, which is why we are proud to be a partner in the greater transit vision for the future of the Los Angeles region.”

In addition to the FFGA, Los Angeles Metro is funding the project with revenues from the Los Angeles County Measure R half-cent sales tax ordinance for transportation improvements. DOT also has granted Metro a loan of $160 million from a Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Loan (TIFIA) to complete the funding package for the project.