Federal grant for Perris Valley Line is made official

Construction is expected to start in January on the long-planned Perris Valley Line transportation project.

Federal officials announced the approval of a $75 million grant for the project, which fills in a major funding gap on the $248 million project, according to a report originally published in The Press-Enterprise.

About 100 people, including members of the Riverside County Transportation Commission, gathered at the Perris Transit Station to hear the formal announcement.

Groundbreaking is scheduled to start in January with the trains expected to start running during the summer of 2015, according to the report.