Los Angeles taxpayers are being forced to shell out $3.6 billion for a new light-rail line through the San Fernando Valley, and they will not even get to ride it during the 2028 Olympics.

The East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project began construction in July 2026, but trains are not expected to start running until December 2031.

The 6.7-mile line will run along Van Nuys Boulevard, with 11 new stations serving Panorama City, Arleta and Pacoima.

The project was once being pushed toward a 2027 opening, which would have put the trains on the tracks in time for Los Angeles’ 2028 Olympic Games.

That deadline is now toast.

Major design changes and utility relocation delays pushed the projected opening back to December 2031, leaving Valley residents to watch the Olympics come and go without the taxpayer-funded rail line they were supposed to have.

And taxpayers are footing the bill at virtually every level.

The $3.6 billion project is being financed entirely through public funding from local, state and federal sources.

LA County taxpayers are contributing through Measure M, the half-cent sales tax approved by county voters and used by LA Metro.

California taxpayers are also helping pay through the state’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program, along with gas-tax revenues.

Then there is Washington.

The Federal Transit Administration awarded LA Metro an $893 million Full Funding Grant Agreement in 2024, using nationwide tax revenues through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The construction contract awarded by LA Metro to Skanska and Stacy Witbeck in a joint venture is worth $2.43 billion, including preconstruction and early-works.

For that mountain of money, the project will deliver a street-level light-rail line along Van Nuys Boulevard, a 26-acre rail and maintenance facility, 11 stations with shade structures, plus utility relocations and improvements.

The line is intended to expand transit access, improve connections to existing services and provide another way for residents to reach work, school and other regional destinations.

Construction and operation are expected to create more than 18,000 direct and indirect jobs, including jobs covered by new local-hire rules under the federal infrastructure bill. AECOM is set to lead design for phase two.

Skanska USA Executive Vice President Civil West Coast Operations James Bailey called the project “an investment in mobility for the region.”

“The Progressive Design-Build delivery method enabled us to collaborate closely with L.A. Metro from day one, bringing designers, builders, stakeholders and community members together to make informed decisions and help shape a light-rail system that will serve the East San Fernando Valley for generations to come.”

Stacy Witbeck Project Manager Eric Meisgeier said crews will have to get every detail right while working through some of LA’s busiest urban corridors.

“Delivering the East San Fernando Valley Light Rail requires getting every detail right, from utility coordination through revenue service, across some of the most active urban corridors in Los Angeles,” said Stacy Witbeck Project Manager Eric Meisgeier. “We will construct this project with the same focus on the work and respect for the community to deliver a project the San Fernando Valley can be proud of.”

Skanska is coming off a 10-year, $2.2 billion project on LA’s D Line, the Purple Line subway extension, where crews navigated pockets of hazardous explosive gases and unearthed massive Ice Age fossils.