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Yesterday, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (L.A. Metro) announced the U.S. Department of Transportation granted a $546 million low-interest loan to the agency for the Crenshaw/LAX Transit Corridor light-rail project.

The loan, which was awarded through the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) program, will enable the agency to more quickly build the 8.5-mile light-rail line. The loan represents the first major federal funding received for a transit project under Measure R, the half-cent transit sales tax measure approved by Los Angeles County voters in 2008, according to L.A. Metro.

To be repaid using Measure R proceeds, the TIFIA loan will help the agency carry out its 30/10 Initiative, which calls for building 12 Measure R transit projects in the next 10 years instead of the originally proposed 30 years by using federal loans and other financing.

The $1.5 billion Crenshaw/LAX corridor will connect the Metro Green Line and Expo Line, which currently is under construction, eventually providing direct light-rail service to a planned transit center at Los Angeles International Airport. The line will feature six stations between downtown L.A., West Los Angeles and the South Bay.

L.A. Metro currently is preparing environmental documents and soon will begin preliminary engineering for the project. Construction could begin in late 2011 and be complete between 2016 and 2018.