Metro (Minnesota)

•   Blue Line: Target Field Station - Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport - Mall of America
•   Green Line: Target Field Station - University of Minnesota - Union Depot
•   Red Line: Mall of America - Apple Valley Transit Station
•   A Line: 46th Street station - Rosedale Center
•   C Line: Downtown Minneapolis - Brooklyn Center Transit Center

The current Metro system consists of five separate projects. There are two light rail lines: the Blue Line, which runs from Target Field in downtown Minneapolis past Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport to the Mall of America, and the Green Line, which runs from Target Field past the University of Minnesota to the Union Depot in downtown Saint Paul. The BRT Red Line serves as an extension of the Blue Line across the Minnesota River, where it connects with southern suburbs at four different stations. Low ridership projections would have made the required bridge for an extension of the Blue Line economically infeasible. The arterial BRT A and C lines serve as upgrades to existing local bus routes and connect with the Blue and Green lines at certain shared stations.

Together, the two light rail lines run on 21.8 miles (35.1 km) of route.[9][10] There are a total of 82 stations; five shared between the Green and Blue Lines in downtown Minneapolis, one shared at the Mall of America between the Blue and the Red Lines, one shared at 46th Street station between the Blue and the A Lines, one shared at Snelling Avenue station between the Green and the A Lines, 13 exclusively for the Blue Line, 16 for the Green Line, four for the Red Line, 18 for the A Line, and 23 for the C Line. The main hub of the system is Target Field Station in Minneapolis, though Saint Paul Union Depot is envisioned as an additional future hub.

Trains and buses run approximately every 10 minutes throughout the day, with reduced schedules at night and on weekends. All stations have electronic displays that show predicted real-time departure information, known as NexTrip. Predicted real-time departure information is also available through Metro Transit's website.

The B line is an arterial bus rapid transit route proposed for the Twin Cities' Lake Street/Marshall Avenue corridor, running from Bde Maka Ska in Minneapolis' Uptown neighborhood to the Snelling & Dayton station of the A Line,[11] with an extension to downtown Saint Paul along Selby Avenue.[12][13] Planning is underway and will continue through early 2020. Station design is planned for 2020–2021 with beginning of construction anticipated in 2022, pending full funding.

The D Line is an arterial bus rapid transit route currently in engineering stages. The route will travel from Brooklyn Center through Downtown Minneapolis and onward through south Minneapolis to the Mall of America. The Route will travel mostly on Fremont and Emerson Avenues in North Minneapolis and Chicago Avenue in South Minneapolis.[14] The project is shovel ready and is awaiting an additional $20 million to begin construction.[15]

The E line is an arterial bus rapid transit route proposed for the Twin Cities's Hennepin Avenue corridor.[16] Metro Transit's 2012 rapid bus study identified a route that would run from downtown Minneapolis to a future Lake Street station on the METRO Green Line extension. However, after further study in the spring of 2019, Metro Transit recommended a route from the Green Line's Stadium Village stop, through Dinkytown to Hennepin Avenue, and then south via Hennepin, 44th Street, and France Avenue to the Southdale Transit Center.[17] Pending full project funding, E Line construction could begin as soon as 2023.

The Green Line extension (also known as the Southwest LRT) is a planned expansion of the Green Line, to run from Target Field Station to several southwestern suburbs. The project was given federal approval in November 2018, and ground was broken on construction on November 30, 2018[18] Completion of the project is expected in 2023, at an expected cost of approximately US$2 billion. It will be the largest infrastructure project in state history.[19]

The Blue Line extension (known as Bottineau LRT) is a planned extension of the Blue Line to Brooklyn Park. The project is under development with a planned 2024 implementation.[20]

The Orange Line is a planned bus rapid transit route to run along I-35W from Minneapolis south into Richfield, Bloomington and Burnsville, with plans to later extend into Lakeville. The Orange Line will parallel the Red Line approximately 3 miles to the east. It is expected to be in operation in 2021.[21] .

The Gold Line is a planned bus rapid transit route to run along Interstate 94 from Woodbury to Mounds Boulevard in Saint Paul, then through downtown to Union Station, terminating near United Hospital.[22] The project is under development with a planned 2024 implementation.[23]

The Rush Line is a planned bus rapid transit route to run largely along the Ramsey County Regional Railroad Authority corridor adjacent to the Bruce Vento Regional Trail from downtown Saint Paul to downtown White Bear Lake, Minnesota.[24] The project is under development with a planned 2026 implementation.

The Riverview Corridor is a transit corridor connecting Downtown Saint Paul and the Mall of America in Bloomington via the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport. The corridor serves an area from the Saint Paul Union Depot to the Mall via parts of the METRO Green Line and the METRO Blue Line, and a route running parallel to West 7th Street, which runs southwest from Downtown Saint Paul. The corridor creates a triangle connecting opposite ends of the Blue Line and Green Line. In December of 2017, a modern streetcar system similar to systems in Portland, Kansas City, and Detroit was selected as the locally preferred alternative with an alignment along West Seventh Street and MN-5.[25]

In early 2021, three corridors will be chosen for bus rapid transit implementation. Out of the eleven corridors studied, the three lines selected will be built as the METRO F Line, G Line, and H Line, with the same characteristics as the METRO A Line and C Line. All three lines are expected to begin construction at the same time in 2024-2025.[26][27]

There are also numerous proposals in early planning stages for routes along Interstate 394 from Minneapolis to Wayzata, Highway 169 from Minneapolis to Shakopee, Interstate 35 from Minneapolis and St. Paul to Forest Lake, Highway 36 from St. Paul to Stillwater and Highway 61 from St. Paul to Hastings (Red Rock Corridor).

Currently two models of LRVs run in the Metro system.

Type I LRVs are Bombardier Flexity Swifts, utilizing a low floor for accessible boarding at all stations. Metro Transit operates 27 vehicles on the lines, numbered 101 through 127. Initially painted with Metro Transit livery, all have been repainted as of 2015 to reflect the Metro system branding. During this time, Type I cars also were retrofitted with colored LCD headboards for route destination displays and other improvements.

Type II LRVs are Siemens S70/Avantos. 59 vehicles have been ordered, primarily to serve the Green Line. Type II LRVs are mechanically, but not electronically, compatible with the current fleet of 27 "type I" vehicles, so while the two generations do run on the tracks at the same time and both types are able to push a malfunctioning unit of the other type, multiple-unit consists may only be assembled of one type.[28]