Blue Line Extension Part 3: A BRT Proposal
The Blue Line extension project promises to increase transit connectivity in the northwest suburbs, but only north-south. Our writer proposes a line running east-west.
Tag Archives: LRT
Questioning the B Line BRT
The State Legislature has approved the bonding to build the bus rapid transit (BRT) B Line, which would replace much of Route 21 Selby-Lake from downtown St. Paul to Uptown. They’re at the conceptual planning level, but there are still some crucial details to work out. This includes the shape of the remaining local service […]
Rerouting the Bottineau Blue Line
When Hennepin County prevented the BNSF and Canadian Pacific railroads from building a freight connection where their lines crossed in Crystal, that killed any chance of light rail sharing the BNSF right of way for seven miles through Golden Valley, Robbinsdale, Crystal and Brooklyn Park. That alignment is no longer available, so what now? I’d […]
A Comprehensive Transit Overhaul for the Twin Cities: Part I
This is the first of a three-part series, published today and the next two Mondays, detailing the rapid transit and regional rail requirements for the Twin Cities to become a transit-oriented, climate-neutral metropolitan region. Today’s entry focuses on rail rapid transit. Next week will cover bus rapid transit, while the final article will look at […]
Building a Complete aBRT System in Minneapolis
aBRT is by far the most important transit project in the state. While it doesn’t get the same attention as pricier projects like the light rail or suburban BRT, aBRT has proven to be the single most effective and cost-efficient way to grow ridership and improve service quality in the Twin Cities. However, we are […]
Counting the Homeless on the Train One July Evening
“Everyone deserves access to safe and affordable shelter.” But ride the light rail train at night and you’ll see a starkly different reality.
“Looking Back, Looking Forward” at Victoria and Dale
[Part of the Saint Paul Field Guide to Public Spaces, put together by a Geography class at Macalester College in the Fall of 2018. See introduction here.] by Michael Wood Whether it be a train or bus—where public transit stops tells you who is included in the public. Viewed this way, riding the Green Line […]
Twin Cities Transit Expansion Timeline
The Twin Cities region has been slow to establish transitways compared to peer cities. While there have been a few new transitways since our first major transit project was completed, the region has a long way to go and will likely need major funding changes for more routes to be completed and in a reasonable […]
Would It Make Financial Sense to Drop A Car?
[This post originally appeared on my blog Think Of It As An Adventure.] One of the things I love about the Longfellow neighborhood – and a big reason I wanted to live here – was its close proximity to everything. That made it possible, in 2010, for my husband and I make the decision to become […]
Sunday Summary – March 4, 2018
Welcome to March and its basketball and meteorological madness. In news from streets.mn, check out this RFP: streets.mn Seeks Proposals for a Volunteer Support Consultant. Yes, streets.mn is hiring a part-time volunteer coordinator on contract for a six-month pilot to support the organization’s writers. The ultimate goal is to increase the number of volunteer-written posts, learn […]