Maryland Transit Administration officials are still evaluating proposals from four teams that are bidding to build the estimated $2.2 billion, 16-mile light rail line.
The MTA, in putting out a request for bids, had set Friday as the date it would notify a team it had been chosen to build the project.
Paul Shepard, MTA spokesman, said in a statement sent to Bethesda Beat Friday that the agency is currently in the evaluation and solicitation process and can’t comment until it reaches a final agreement. An announcement about the selected bid is anticipated to occur in February, according to Shepard.
“Note that the Jan. 15 date in the [request for proposal] for proposer selection, which was reported in local news media, was just a guideline for proposers and not a certain date for the selection of any team,” Shepard said, in the statement.
The four teams competing to build the line are composed of developers, construction companies and investors.
Patrick Lacefield, a Montgomery County spokesman, said in an email Friday the county has one representative on the five-person executive committee that is examining the bids. He said he has not heard if a bid has been chosen.
The winning team would be responsible for financing, designing, constructing, and operating the project. The team will then be repaid by the MTA in annual payments once the line is operating, according to the agency.
