WASHINGTON (AP) Metro Planning Committee members have agreed to spend an additional $12 million on the construction of the New York Avenue Metro station.

The additional funds for the now $103-million project will cover extra project management and increased insurance costs.

Metro staff updated committee members May 1 on construction, which began a year ago on a stretch of the Red Line in Northeast Washington. The final design is complete, two-thirds of the station footings are ready and Metro is conducting workshops to plan how to minimize disruption to Red Line passengers in the final phases of construction.

The station is expected to open in late 2004, and bring new economic development to the neighborhood. The area is also one of the proposed sites for a new baseball stadium, should the Montreal Expos move to Washington.

Board members also directed Metro to find better ways to access the station. Current plans call for no parking or kiss and ride section and no Metro bus service directly to the station.

“This just doesn’t make sense to me,” said Board Member Carlton Sickles.

The project manager explained there is no bus drop off because Florida Avenue has too much traffic and is not passenger friendly.

“If the problem is car traffic, we have to deal with that,” Board Member Christopher Zimmerman said. “It sure does look goofy to have a major Metro access station and not have bus service.”

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