A New Vision for Transit
Transportation Choices 2020--Move Us Forward

Transportation Choices 2020 is more than a bill--it's a new vision for transit. Picture this: the Central Corridor light rail line connects the downtowns of St. Paul and Minneapolis. People are reading newspapers on the Northstar commuter rail as they ride between Big Lake and the Twin Cities. The Cedar Avenue bus rapid transit line is up and running, the bus system has twice as many riders, and the Southwest light rail line is connecting downtown Minneapolis to Hopkins, St. Louis Park, Minnetonka, and Eden Prairie.

Transit for Livable Communities' new "Envision Transportation Choices" maps show how our region could look by 2020--with eight new bus/rail transitways and doubled bus service.

What's planned in your community?

• Bottineau Boulevard Busway. A 22-mile busway from northwest Minneapolis to Robbinsdale, Crystal, Brooklyn Park, Osseo, Dayton, Maple Grove, and Rogers.
• Cedar Avenue Busway. A 16 mile busway running from the Mall of America south to Burnsville, Eagan, Apple Valley, and Lakeville.
• Central Corridor Light Rail Transit. An 11-mile light rail line connecting downtown St. Paul and downtown Minneapolis by way of University and Washington Avenues.
• Hiawatha Light Rail Transit. A 12-mile light rail line running south from downtown Minneapolis to the Airport and the Mall of America.
• Northstar Commuter Rail. A 40-mile, six-station commuter rail corridor linking downtown Minneapolis to Big Lake.
• Red Rock Commuter Rail. A 30-mile commuter rail corridor running north along Highway 61 from Hastings to St. Paul and on to Minneapolis.
• Rush Line Commuter Rail. An 80-mile corridor connecting downtown St. Paul with Hinckley.
• Southwest Light Rail Transit. A 14-mile light rail corridor extending southwest from downtown Minneapolis through Hopkins, St. Louis Park, Minnetonka, and Eden Prairie.
• I-35W Busway. A 20-mile busway running from Burnsville to downtown Minneapolis.
  
  Additional Projects Under Consideration
  Robert Street Transitway
  I-94 Transitway (east of St. Paul)
  I-494 Transitway
  I-394 Transitway
  Cambridge Commuter Rail
  Streetcars (various Minneapolis and St. Paul locations, including the Midtown Greenway)

A regional transit system could fully connect our region by 2020—but only if our legislature and governor have the courage to invest in the transportation system that our state wants and deserves.

Minnesota shouldn’t have to wait nearly a quarter century for the transit we need now. We wouldn’t fund education grade by grade, and we shouldn’t be funding transit corridor by corridor. Transportation Choices 2020 is a realistic framework to break the stalemate and start breaking ground on a twenty-first century transit system.

For more information about Transportation Choices 2020, click here.

 

 

 

 

 

Transitways Map JPG file (160 KB)
Transitways Map PDF file (1.16 MB)

Doubling Bus Ridership Map JPG file (180 KB)
Doubling Bus Ridership Map PDF file (835 KB)