FTA approves MBTA's scaled-down Green Line light-rail extension plans

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has approved new cost and schedule estimates for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA) Green Line light-rail extension.

The cost of the project previously had ballooned to $3 billion, but MBTA officials in May 2016 trimmed it down to $2.3 billion by removing some station elements and downsizing a planned vehicle maintenance facility, among other efforts.

The Boston-area transit agency needed federal authorization before advancing the project, The Boston Globe reported.

MBTA plans to partially fund the extension with $996 million in FTA New Starts funds. The project is slated to be finished by 2021's end.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) and MBTA "look forward to continuing to work with our federal partners, while continuing to invest in the improvements and long-term infrastructure upgrades to the core system over one million riders depend on each day," said MassDOT spokeswoman Lisa Battiston in an email.