Huge Fight Over Metro Just Escalated ... Big Time

WASHINGTON, DC -- The fight over Metro's future has taken an ugly turn, as Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said he's considering lobbying to disband Metro's Board of Directors -- comments that came after Metro Board Chairman Jack Evans threatened to stop a land transfer for the Purple Line unless the state agrees to a plan he has to restructure the board, according to a WTOP report.

Hogan called Evans' threats "extortion," claiming that Evans was attempting to force the state to go along with his demands in exchange for the Purple Line.

Ground was broken in late August for the embattled and long-anticipated $5.6 billion Purple Line commuter rail project that will serve Montgomery and Prince George's counties. The 16-mile light rail system will run east-west inside the Capital Beltway, with 21 stations connecting to: Metrorail’s Orange, Green, and Red lines; the MARC Brunswick, Camden, and Penn lines; and Amtrak at New Carrollton.

If Evans follows through on his threats, Hogan said, he "would be willing to go along with Eleanor Holmes Norton from D.C., who said the entire board should be disbanded," WTOP reports.

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has also weighed in on the controversy, suggesting that the board shrink to five people. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is also expected to recommend a five-member panel.

Evans has been under a lot of pressure to resign after overseeing a system in crisis over the last couple years, but he doesn't plan on doing so, according to the report.

Image via WMATA