INGLEWOOD, Calif. (CNS) — The California State Transportation Agency awarded a $407 million grant Tuesday to help fund construction of an automated transit system that will carry passengers from downtown Inglewood to the doorsteps of SoFi Stadium, the Kia Forum and future Intuit Dome home of the Clippers.

The roughly $1.5 billion project will carry passengers about 1.6 miles from the Metro K Line’s downtown Inglewood Station to the city’s stadium/arena district, with a pair of stations planned on Prairie Avenue.

Officials said the Inglewood Transit Connector will be able to carry up to 11,000 passengers per hour, accommodating an estimated 9.7 million annual boardings.

The city and the Inglewood Transit Connector Joint Powers Authority are working with the Federal Transit Agency in hopes of obtaining a Federal Transit Agency grant to help cover the balance of the project’s cost.

A contract is expected to be awarded late this summer for design work on the project, with the goal of opening the line in time for the 2028 Olympics.