New streetcar line groundbreaking in New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and other city officials have broken ground for a new streetcar line. It is expected to begin service in about a year, running from the bus and rail station through the Central Business District to Canal Street.

The project got $45 million in stimulus money last year.

LaHood said Tuesday that the Federal Transit Administration also is giving the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority $400,000 to establish a program to help hire and train skilled maintenance workers for streetcars.

He says the RTA will work with Delgado Community College to ensure that unemployed and underemployed residents have a chance to get jobs created by the stimulus grant.