Planning for Potential Transit Budget Reductions

At the June 27, 2011 meeting of the Metropolitan Council Transportation Committee, John Levin, Metro Transit's Director of Service Development, summarizes Metro Transit's plans to provide information and collect public input regarding potential transit service reductions and fare increases, which may be necessary given anticipated shortfalls in the regional transit operations budget.

While watching the video, you can also view Levin's slide presentation (14 pages, pdf).

Transit News

Community Columnist: Operators of opt-out bus systems face tough choices

Changing transportation priorities

Transit union challenges new policy on cell phones

MVTA Cedar Grove Transit Station

Xcelsior Bus Demonstration

New Flyer Xcelsior Bus to Operate on MVTA Routes

Xcelsior Bus Demonstration
NOTE: Fares will be collected; there will be no bike rack on this bus.

Thursday-Friday, June 3-4:
Morning: 446 SB 7:06am
446 NB 8:03am 446 SB 9:08am
446 NB 10:03am 446 SB 11:08am
446 NB 12:03pm
Afternoon: 436 NB 3:40pm
478 SB 4:59pm

Saturday, June 5
445 WB 7:56am
441 SB 9:04am 441 NB 10:03am
445 EB 11:02am 445 WB 11:56am
441 SB 1:04pm 441 NB 2:03pm

Sunday, June 6
444 NB 7:40am 444 SB 8:45am
444 NB 9:40am 444 SB 10:45am
444 NB 11:40am 444 SB 12:45pm
444 NB 1:40pm 444 SB 2:45pm
444 NB 3:40pm

Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday, June 7-9
Morning: 477 NB 6:36am
Afternoon: 470 SB 3:00pm
472 SB 4:24pm

Thursday-Friday, June 10-11
Morning: 476 NB 6:17am
436 SB 7:45am
Afternoon: 442 SB 1:48pm 442 NB 2:48pm
489 NB 4:10pm
484 SB 5:04pm

Ceder Grove Transit Station Grand Opening

MVTA, City of Eagan, Dakota County Celebrate Cedar Grove Grand Opening

MVTA Brings Artculated Bus to Area for Demonstration

MVTA Brings Nova LFS Artic to Area for Demonstration

The bus will operate on the following routes on the specified trips and days. Fares will not be charged on these trips.

Thursday, Friday (Feb. 25-26), Monday (March 1)
Route 480 - Heart of the City P&R to DT St. Paul, 6:36 a.m.
Route 480 - Blackhawk P&R to DT St. Paul, 8:15 a.m.
Route 442 - Burnsville Center (BVC) to Mall Of America (MOA), 3:35 p.m.
Route 442 - MOA?to BVC, 4:32 p.m.
Route 442 - BVC to MOA, 5:35 p.m.
Route 442 - MOA?to BVC, 6:32 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 27
Route 444 - Savage P&R (SPR) to MOA, 7:25 a.m.
Route 444 - MOA to SPR, 8:30 a.m.
Route 444 - SPR to MOA, 9:25 a.m.
Route 444 - MOA to SPR, 10:30 a.m.
Route 444 - SPR to MOA, 11:25 a.m.
Route 444 - MOA to SPR, 12:30 p.m.
Route 444 - SPR to MOA, 1:25 p.m.
Route 444 - MOA to SPR, 2:30 p.m.

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday (March 2-5)
Route 442 - BVC to MOA, 7:04 a.m.
Route 442 - MOA?to BVC, 8:32 a.m.
Route 442 - BVC to MOA, 9:34 a.m.
Route 442 - MOA?to BVC, 10:32 a.m.
Route 442 - BVC to MOA, 11:34 a.m.
Route 442 - MOA?to BVC, 12:32 p.m.
Route 460 - Gateway Ramp to Burnsville Transit Station (BTS), 4:35 p.m.
Route 460 - Gateway Ramp to BTS, 5:55 p.m.

Saturday, March 6
Route 444 - SPR to MOA, 3:25 p.m.
Route 444 - MOA to SPR, 4:30 p.m.
Route 444 - SPR to MOA, 5:25 p.m.
Route 444 - MOA to SPR, 6:30 p.m.
Route 444 - SPR to MOA, 7:25 p.m.
Route 444 - MOA to SPR, 8:30 p.m.

Articulated Bus Facts & Figures

Transit In the News

This is the scary one, I do this route two night a week.

Metro Transit passenger charged in bottle-tossing altercation

Car collides with light rail train

Apple Valley has high hopes for stylish transit station

Routes will change on Dec. 12

These routes will change on Dec. 12

Beginning Saturday, Dec. 12, changes will be made to routes operated by Metro Transit and regional transit providers.
This list is an overview of the changes. If your route is listed, please pick up an updated schedule for details. Schedules are available below, on buses and trains and at Metro Transit stores and outlets.
Beginning Dec. 12, if you know your route and just need departure times, call NexTrip at 612-341-4287.
Jump down to:
Minnesota Valley Transit Authority
Maple Grove Transit
Plymouth Metrolink
SouthWest Transit
BlueXpress

Marquette and 2nd transit corridor opens in downtown Minneapolis
These routes will travel on the reconstructed Marquette Avenue and 2nd Avenue in downtown Minneapolis:
Metro Transit133, 135, 146, 156, 250, 260, 261, 264, 270, 288, 467, 535, 552, 553, 554, 558, 576, 578, 587, 597, 673, 760, 761, 762, 763, 765, 766, 767, 824, 850, 852, 854, 889
Minnesota Valley Transit Authority460, 464, 465, 470, 472, 476, 477, 478, 479
Maple Grove Transit780, 781, 782, 783, 784
Plymouth Metrolink742, 747, 772, 774, 776, 777, 790, 793, 795
SouthWest Transit680, 684, 685, 690, 691, 697, 698, 699
BlueXpress490
Schedule times for these routes will be adjusted due to faster bus travel speeds through downtown. Routes will stop every other block. Please pick up a new printed schedule or click here to see which stops your route will serve on Marquette and 2nd avenues.

Holiday Service

Reduced service on the day after Thanksgiving
Due to decreased demand, most Metro Transit routes will follow SATURDAY schedules on the day after Thanksgiving (Friday, Nov. 27). Saturday fares will be charged – there will be no rush-hour charges (except for some suburban providers). Weekday fares will be charged on Northstar trains.
The Metropolitan Transit Information Center will be open regular hours (6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.) on Nov. 27. The Minneapolis and St. Paul transit stores will be open from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. Customer Relations and Lost & Found will be open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
All routes will follow SATURDAY schedules unless listed below. Some routes will operate trips in addition the normal Saturday schedule. If your route does not have a schedule for Saturday service and is not listed here, it will not operate on Nov. 27.
Note: Metro Transit buses and light-rail trains will follow Sunday/Holiday schedules on Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov. 26). There is no Northstar service on Thanksgiving. Metro Transit stores, Customer Relations, Lost & Found and the Metropolitan Transit Information Center will be closed.
Jump down to:
Minnesota Valley Transit Authority
Maple Grove Transit
Plymouth Metrolink

MVTA Newsletter

Minnesota Valley Transit Authority News That Travels

H1N1 Precautions

H1N1 Precautions on Public Transportation

Como Transit Station Part 2

Transit Police SUV

New Flyer Articulated buses lines up at Como Transit Station


Buses at gates

Metro Transit Gillig Hybrid Low Floor Bus # 7116 with State Fair wrap doing the Route 960

Metro Transit Gillig Hybrid Low Floor Bus # 7171 doing Dunwoody Park and Ride

Como Transit Station

These pictures and video were taken on my cell phone on Sat. 9-5-09

Southwest and MVTA buses at Como Transit Station

Mn. State Fair

I have more pictures from the Minnesota State Fair at the Como Transit Station.

(Note these were taken on my cell phone.)

Southwest and MVTA buses lines up in staging area.

Buses waiting at the gates

Transit proposal irks local officials

Transit proposal irks local officials
Shannon Fiecke of the Shakopee Valley News reports:
On her drive down Como Avenue one day, St. Paul legislator Alice Hausman noticed a slew of coach buses from Southwest Transit.The DFL state representative called to find out what was going on — and was told the suburban transit provider, which offers express bus service to Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota, had decided to park its buses at the State Fair lot during the day to save money.
What Southwest Transit viewed as a tremendous savings (more than $30,000 per month), Hausman saw as a sign of system inefficiency, given that Southwest — like other suburban “opt-out” bus services, such as BlueXpress in Shakopee and Prior Lake — isn’t part of the same system as the larger Metro Transit.
“All those big beautiful coaches sit unused all day because they’re not part of a coordinated transit system,” she said.
Hausman is pushing legislation that would eliminate suburban control of bus services (as well as Metro Transit’s) by folding all transit providers into one statewide entity. Hearings on her proposal are expected this fall, before the Legislature convenes, and the topic has also been selected for study by the state legislative auditor.
Scott County Commissioner John Ulrich of Savage — who has his hand in transportation-related issues — told fellow commissioners recently that Hausman is on a mission to eliminate transit opt-outs like BlueXpress — and they need to be on guard.
“We provide very efficient, excellent service,” he said.
Hausman says she doesn’t want to take bus service away from the suburbs, but make it equitable — so those living in one part of the Twin Cities aren’t paying toward a higher level of service elsewhere.
“Huge inequities” have built up across the metro, she said, pointing out higher subsidy figures for suburban riders, their nice coach buses and Southwest Transit’s “Cadillac” station in Eden Prairie, which is heated and cooled and has a TV. Meanwhile, Metro Transit passengers who stand at Cleveland and Grand avenues don’t even have a bus shelter, she said.
But others view her proposal as a power grab to take away what suburban providers have worked so hard to build.
“The transit system here gets pretty darn high marks,” said Carver County Commissioner Tom Workman, a former Republican legislator. “They [others] want this common denominator stuff.”
Communities in the southwest metro were allowed to “opt-out” of the metro bus system originally, Ulrich and others say, because even though they were paying property taxes into the system, they weren’t being served adequately. (Since then, the major funding mechanism has switched from property taxes to the motor vehicle sales tax, although a special metro taxing district levies for capital projects, including park-and-rides and buses.)
“They robbed the suburban area for years and decades shamelessly,” Workman said, “and now that suburbs are standing up on their hind legs, they want more of our money to help with their ‘abyss.’”
Southwest Transit CEO Len Simich said he implemented a plan that turned Southwest Transit from an agency with negative customer feedback into one of the fastest-growing systems in the country that is recognized nationally. Until recently, its ridership was climbing by double digits every year.
Southwest Transit worked hard for its success, Simich said, and aggressively went after grant funds by showing the federal government exactly how certain steps would increase ridership.
“We didn’t get there with the help of Alice Hausman,” Workman said. “We got there on our own.”
DEFINING SUCCESS
Money for buses and light rail comes from a variety of sources, including the motor vehicle sales tax, fares and state and federal funds distributed by the Metropolitan Council.
According to the state legislative auditor, there are 24 transit systems in the Twin Cities area, including Metro Transit, the largest provider, which is operated by the Met Council. While express bus services like BlueXpress and Southwest Transit — which serves Chanhassen, Chaska and Eden Prairie — get part of their funding through the Met Council, they are independently run.
Suburban providers feel under attack from Hausman, a legislator who is perceived to have considerable clout when it comes to transit. They also believe they are getting the short end of the stick from the Met Council when it comes to funding.
The Met Council will be withholding operating dollars from Southwest Transit and Minnesota Valley Transit Authority to help plug holes in the regional transit system, primarily to cover Metro Transit’s deficit.
Forecasting tough times ahead, Southwest Transit reduced services and its staff size the last couple years to put its operation in a healthy position, Simich said. While he is OK with using a portion of its reserves to help shoulder the economic downturn, Simich believes his agency is being asked to carry too much of the burden and is being penalized for doing the “right thing,” when others weren’t planning ahead.
BlueExpress has had difficulty getting the buses it was supposed to get from the Met Council, and recently rejected two of three used buses it was finally offered because they were too old, Shakopee Community Development Director Michael Leek said.
Local officials have also complained about a push by the Met Council to standardize regional services and make buses look similar.
In one spat — noted by Hausman — Minnesota Valley Transit Authority wanted the Met Council to reupholster seats with the MVTA logo. Metro Transit wouldn’t budge, so MVTA (which serves Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Rosemount and Savage) did it themselves, she said.
“Though you and I pay for it, they get to make the decision and reupholster it anyway,” she said.
To build ridership, Simich said Southwest Transit must tailor its service to “choice riders,” who have other options for getting downtown.

Reduced Service on July 3 and 4

Schedule for July 4 holiday

Reduced service on Friday, July 3
Due to decreased customer demand, most Metro Transit routes will follow SATURDAY schedules on Friday, July 3. Saturday fares will be charged – there will be no rush-hour charges (except for some suburban providers).
The Metropolitan Transit Information Center will be open regular hours (6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.) on Friday, July 3. The Minneapolis and St. Paul transit stores will be open from 7:30 to 11 a.m. (the Mall of America store is temporarily closed). Customer Relations and Lost & Found will be open from 8 a.m. to noon.
All routes will follow SATURDAY schedules unless listed below. Some routes will operate trips in addition to the normal Saturday schedule. If your route does not have a Saturday schedule and is listed below, trips added are selected from the weekday schedule. If your route does not have a schedule for Saturday service and is not listed here, it will not operate on July 3.

CLICK ON THE ABOVE LINK FOR SPECIFIC ROUTE INFORMATION

Holiday service on Saturday, July 4
Metro Transit buses and trains will follow Sunday/Holiday schedules on Saturday, July 4. Metro Transit stores, Customer Relations and Lost & Found will be closed. The Metropolitan Transit Information Center will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m

MVTA Bus Roadeo

MVTA to Host Sixth Annual Bus Roadeo

The MVTA will host its sixth annual Bus Roadeo at Dakota County Technical College on Saturday, June 20. Bus drivers from the MVTA's two garages are expected to compete for prizes, with the two winning drivers continuing on to the State Roadeo in Albert Lea, MN on July 25. The public is invited to attend. Written testing is to begin at 8 a.m., with road-testing to follow. Winners are expected to be announced about 12:30 p.m.

MVTA Operates Reduced Service on Fridays

MVTA Operates Reduced Service on Fridays Beginning June 12
The MVTA will operate a modified service schedule on the most Fridays beginning June 12 through Labor Day. Additionally, there will be several Thursdays with reduced service. The modified service schedule will operate on the following dates: 6/12, 6/19, 6/26, 7/10, 7/17, 7/24, 7/31, 8/7, 8/14, 8/21, 8/28 and 9/4 ( All Fridays); 7/2 (Thursday before Independence Day); 9/3 (Thursday before Labor Day): Trips on these days will be reduced on Routes 460, 470 and 477 as detailed
Route 460

• Northbound trips that will not operate: 6:30, 6:56, 7:11, 7:46 a.m. from Burnsville Transit Station.; 7:42 a.m. trip moved to 7:43 a.m.; 7:50 a.m. trip move to 7:48a.m.; 7:55 a.m. trip move to 7:54 a.m.
• Southbound trips from Gateway Ramp that will not operate: 3:34, 4:02, 4:48, 5:01 p.m.; 3:44 p.m. trip moved to 3:41; 3:57 p.m. trip moved to 4:01 p.m.; 4:44 p.m. trip moved to 4:46 p.m.; 4:58 trip move to 5:00 p.m.

Route 470

• Northbound trip that will not operate: 6:53 a.m.; Southbound trip that will not operate: 4:06 p.m.; southbound trip at 3:59 p.m. move to 4:02 p.m.

Southbound trip that will not operate: 4:06 p.m.; southbound trip at 3:59 p.m. move to 4:02 p.m.

Route 477

• Northbound trip that will not operate: 7:07 a.m.; northbound trip at 6:48 a.m. moved to 6:49 a.m.; 7:14 a.m. trip move to 7:12 a.m.
• Southbound trip that will not operate: 5:02, 5:17 p.m.; southbound trip at 4:49 p.m. moved to 4:51 p.m.; 4:57 p.m. trip moved to 5:00 p.m. and extended to 157th Street Station.

New Cedar Avenue transit station to break ground June 8

MVTA, City of Eagan, Dakota County Celebrate Cedar Grove Transit Station Construction Kick-off
Visitors will be welcomed by Eagan Mayor Mike Maguire. Emcee for the event is MVTA chair and Burnsville Mayor Elizabeth Kautz. Also participating in the ceremony are Sen. Jim Carlson, Rep. Sandra Masin, Dakota County Commissioner Tom Egan, Metropolitan Councilmember Dan Wolter and Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) Urban Partnership Agreement (UPA) Project Manager Nick Thompson. Participants will highlight the history, future and importance of this vital transit project.
Construction of the new station will begin in June 2009 and is scheduled to be completed by May 2010. The station is part of the 16-mile Cedar Avenue Transitway being constructed between the Mall of America and County Road 70 in Lakeville.

For more information about the ceremony, please contact Robin Selvig at 952-882-7504.

Cedar Grove Concept Plan

UPDATE:
The program will be at 2 p.m. and the event is free and open to the public. It is located at Nicols Road and Cedar Grove Parkway in Eagan, MN


View Larger Map

Bus rapid transit

Bus rapid transit: Coming 'soon,' confusing now
Bus rapid transit could be the next big thing in Twin Cities' transit.
But it's not clear that what commuters will get -- for years to come -- is what they're being promised. And that's creating a danger of a public relations fiasco.