CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Charlotte leaders are concerned after they found out late Tuesday that they greatly underestimated the cost of the city's light rail project.

The mayor and the Charlotte City Council learned for the first time in a closed door session that delays and dilemmas have made the 10-mile project's predicted budget skyrocket from $200 million to $427 million.

"Not safety issues, but issues that are costing us money and time and delay, which is money," said Ronald Tober, Charlotte Area Transit System director.

Leaders now have no idea how much the project might actually cost by the time it's finished in Nov. 2007. So far about six miles of track have been laid.

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SURVEY:Do You Think Charlotte's Light Rail Will Be Worth Its Projected Cost?

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Former City Council Member Don Reid says for years he's been trying to tell the mayor and other city leaders that the project was bound to go over the budget.

"The consultants that are hired always understate the cost," he said. "At some point, instead of making excuses, someone's going to have to say, 'Who's fault is it really?'"

Tober took some of the blame.

"We probably have made some mistakes, the CATS staff has, on how we managed this project, and I take responsibility for that," he said.

Mayor Pat McCrory did not say if the job of anyone specifically is on the line because of the very public mismanagement of funds.

"Everyone is being reviewed," he said.

City leaders said they are considering suing the group they paid $40 million to put together the light rail project. The money paid to Parsons Transportation Group is in addition to the anticipated $427 million cost of the light rail project.

CATS officials said taxpayers will not be asked to pay any extra now because of the budget problems. The extra money to pay for the project will come from the transit tax that voters approved in 1998.