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Minneapolis' new light rail project, the "Hiawatha Line",
opened June 26, 2004, after three and a half years of
construction. The line is 12 miles long, connecting downtown
Minneapolis to the Mall of America via the Minneapolis/St. Paul
Airport and the Minnesota Twins Metrodome. The light rail vehicles
were manufactured by Bombardier, with 24 cars ordered and 2 more on
option. The articulated cars are 94 feet long with passenger capacity
of 187, including room for luggage racks and bicycle storage, and are
of low-floor, ADA-compliant design. Service patterns have a train
arriving every 7.5 minutes during rush hour, 10 minutes between
trains midday, 15 minutes evenings til 9:00 pm, and 30 minutes during
early mornings and late evenings. The route includes some street
running, some tunnel, and some private right of way. The Airport
stations are located in a tunnel segment.
The stations are as follows: Warehouse District/Hennepin
Ave; Nicollet Mall; Government Plaza; Downtown East/Metrodome;
Cedar-Riverside; Franklin Avenue; Lake Street/Midtown; 38th Street;
46th Street; 50th Street/Minnehaha Park; V. A. Medical Center; Fort
Snelling; Airport-Lindbergh Terminal; Airport-Humphrey Terminal;
Bloomington Central; 28th Ave; Mall of America. Fort Snelling is the
temporary outer terminal. Starting in December, trains will operate
further south Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport and Mall
Of America. A 26 acre maintenance
facility is located at Franklin Ave., Minneapolis.
More Information
- Minnesota
Transportation Museums
Photos and descriptions of streetcar
operations at the Minnesota Streetcar Museum and the Ironworld
Discovery Center.
- Official Site -
Metro Transit
http://www.metrotransit.org/rail/index.asp/
Official
site of the Minneapolis/St. Paul Metro Transit, including schedules, maps, fares, and more!
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