Beyond 2030: Looking at Intercity Rail in Minnesota
A look at the future of Minnesota’s intercity rail beyond Duluth and Chicago
Category: Railroads
Rail vs Bus on the Red Rock Corridor
Eric Ecklund • April 15, 2021 Back in the late 1990s, MnDOT analyzed several existing freight rail corridors in the Twin Cities region for the possibility of implementing commuter rail service. Three routes were chosen for their cost effectiveness and best potential ridership: the Northstar Line to St. Cloud, the Red Rock Corridor to Hastings, and the Dan Patch Corridor to […]
In, Out and Around Railroad Island
Wolfie Browender • January 21, 2021 September 23, 2019 23 miles Summit-University, Frogtown (Thomas-Dale), Downtown, Railroad Island (Payne-Phalen), North End, Midway, Lexington-Hamline, Macalester-Groveland, Highland Park Downtown Minnesota’s stunningly beautiful and recently renovated Capitol building obviously is the center piece of the Capitol Complex. However, the Transportation Building, Senate and State Office Buildings, the Judicial Center, and some 10 other structures (and […]
Opinion: Biden should invest $1 trillion on trains
Speed Rogers • December 14, 2020 Now that Joe Biden is president-elect, he must ask Congress to include a rail infrastructure package in any upcoming coronavirus relief bill. For the sake of the economy—and the climate—any economic relief bill must fund rail infrastructure investments at a massive scale. The United States has underinvested in passenger rail for decades, leaving our country […]
Rail-with-Trails of the Twin Cities
Eric Ecklund • December 7, 2020 In my previous post I discussed rail-trails, which are abandoned railroad right-of-ways repurposed as trails. The Twin Cities has many of these, but the region also has several so-called rail-with-trail corridors. Rail-with-trails are trails alongside active rail lines. They provide a safe path for people, deterring trespassing on railroad property while still allowing train movements, […]
Rail-Trails of the Twin Cities
Eric Ecklund • November 2, 2020 For several decades, railroads have abandoned many miles of track in the United States due to several factors including redundant routes, bankruptcies, mergers and significant government investment in roads that made shipping freight by rail less competitive than by truck. While some railroad right-of-ways have disappeared from redevelopment, others have been converted to trails that […]
The Robert Piram Trail Completes a Major Missing Link in Saint Paul
Dan Marshall • October 29, 2020 In a few weeks, the Robert Piram Regional Trail will officially open between Saint Paul and South Saint Paul. Here’s why it just might be the Twin Cities cycling community’s new favorite trail.
Amtrak’s Empire Builder: The Train that Deserves Better
Eric Ecklund • September 28, 2020 Amtrak’s Empire Builder, the only intercity rail service in Minnesota, will be reduced from daily to tri-weekly service beginning in October due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. I decided to take it one more time before the cuts went into effect, as there’s no way of knowing how long it’ll be before daily […]
Notable Tunnels of the Twin Cities Suburbs
Dan Marshall • September 17, 2020 Many suburbs have retrofitted bicycle infrastructure, usually so that vulnerable users won’t slow automotive throughput. Along the way, many of these projects have spawned tunnels, which are always fun.
National Links: Fast Trains, Bad Sidewalks and Rezoning Miami
Every day at The Overhead Wire we collect news about cities and send the links to our email list. At the end of the week we take some of the most popular stories and post them to Greater Greater Washington, a group blog similar to streets.mn that focuses on urban issues in the D.C. region. […]