Light Rail Transit

Light Rail Transit-
Hiawatha Line

Wei Chen, Katie Bruwelheide, Tait Swenson

Case Study Number 8 November 6th, 2002

Examine the 6 main buttons that describe the Hiawatha Line Project. This gives current information on the status.

Another overview of the LRT project.

Since its ground breaking on January 17, 2001, the Hiawatha Light Rail Line is over half complete. This new transit line will link three of the metro’s most popular destinations, downtown Minneapolis, the Minneapolis/Saint Paul International Airport, and the Mall of America in Bloomington. According to the Minnesota Department of Transportation website, the line is scheduled to open in late 2003 but the opening may be pushed back until Spring 2004 for budget reasons. Initial estimates in ridership project the number of the people riding the train at 22,000 per day when it opens. These projections climb to 24,800 per day by the year 2020. In addition to the transit trains, MetroTransit will offer 46 bus routes with connecting service and time coordinated transfers at 13 rail stations. Fares are currently projected to be the equivalent of bus fares. Park and ride locations will be located near Fort Snelling and the Mall of America and parking will be limited in areas around station stops. Total cost for the project in 2002 dollars, is projected to be $675.4 million. This funding will come from the Federal Transit Administration, the State of Minnesota, Metropolitan Airports Commission, Hennepin County Regional Rail Authority, a Federal grant for congestion mitigation, and the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

The top speed for the train is 55mph with a general speed of 35mph. Rush hour service will have 7.5 minutes between trains with basic service being 10 minutes between trains. Travel time from downtown Minneapolis to the Airport will be 23 minutes and one can ride the entire route to the Mall of America in just 31 minutes. This route has major bridges over Hiawatha Avenue at 28th Street, Lake Street, and TH 62. A major undertaking is at the MSP Airport where two tunnels are being constructed under the airport’s runways that will allow the riders to be dropped off inside the Airport.

This new infrastructure undertaking is the first of its kind in Minnesota. Future plans call for the addition of other light rail lines that connect to the Hiawatha line creating a light rail network in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. The impact of this new transportation infrastructure has been hypothesized but is still unknown. The light rail line has the potential to change neighborhoods, alter roadway conditions, and positively or negatively influence businesses and communities around the chosen routes. This case study will examine the overall effects of this new system.

Background
The links below provide the background information for the project: when, where, what and how. It even contains Minnesota's version of the Big Dig. Read deep enough into multilink web pages to get the background facts for the case. You do not need to follow every link on the pages.

Hiawatha Line Home Page(Check out the 6 main topics)

Metropolitan Council's LRT Page

Officials Break Ground for Light Rail

Resources on Minnesota Issues :Light Rail Transit

Light Rail Delayed

Rail Transit Planning

A Desire Named Streetcar Pickrell, Don

Abstract: The forecasts that led local officials in eight U.S. cities to advocate rail transit projects over competing, less capital-intensive options grossly overestimated rail transit ridership and underestimated rail construction costs and operating expenses. These mistakes cannot be explained by such obvious sources as errors in projecting the input variables of the ridership forecasting models, or changes in the design of projects. Although planners could reduce the magnitude of the errors by various technical improvements in the forecasting process, the structure of transit grant programs and the existence of dedicated funding sources provide little incentive for local officials to seek accurate information in evaluating alternatives. The resulting bias toward high-capital transit investments is thus unlikely to be eliminated without restructuring both federal transit grant programs and local financing mechanisms.

Opinions
The links below provide a sample of the opinions in Minnesota about LRT. Keep in mind who the author of the opinion is and what, if any, stake they have in the development of LRT.

MPR Light Rail Poll

Gravy Train

Taxpayer's League Radio Ad

Download and listen to this radio ad from www.taxpayersleague.org Briefly visit their site to see what their organization is about.

More Roads vs. LRT

Handout in Class

Final Hiawatha Corridor LRT Benefit-Cost Analysis

Given out Monday, November 4th

External Effects of LRT
Engineers and planners today understand the repercussions of their actions more clearly than in past eras. Below are links highlighting some possible outcomes of the new LRT line along with opinions of those influenced .

Potential Development

Revitalization of Neighborhoods: Lake Street and Hiawatha

Hiawatha-Lake Street Station: Small Businesses

Government Officials Speak Out
As with all government issues, politicians seem to choose sides on hot issues and hold their ground staunchly. Here are two examples of opinions of lawmakers at the Capitol.

Legislature Gives LRT a Lift

Gov. Ventura Claims Light Rail Victory at Groundbreaking

Conflict of Interests?
Why is the Star Tribune at the center of an LRT controversy?

Journalist's Conflicted Interests

Case against the Star Tribune

Future
What are the plans after the completion of the Hiawatha Line? Where does rail transit go from here?

View the 3 following Future LRT Corridors highlighted from Related LRT Links.

Central Corridor
Riverview Corridor
Cedar Ave Corridor

With the project well underway, light rail will soon be a reality in Minnesota. Some see the project as "pork-barrel" spending while others see it as the "holy grail" in transportation. The issues raised are important to consider when spending millions of taxpayer dollars to implement a system that will have unknown outcomes, both positive and negative.

Reflect on the following questions while reading the material for the case:

What changes, if any, in policy were necessary to implement LRT?
Who is funding the project and how does that influence public opinion?
What factors will strongly affect the cost-effectiveness of LRT?
Compare the costs and benefits of LRT transit and highway travel and determine which is more expensive overall: to the user, to government.
Critics said that in the vast majority of U.S. cases when a new LRT system opens, traffic congestion throughout the metropolitan area sees a decrease of less than 1% which dissipates within a matter of months. Do you agree with this argument? Why?
What other options besides light rail were available for the route? How did the costs compare to Light Rail? Why was Light Rail still the choice made?
Who are the major proponents/opponents to the Light Rail Line?
Who are the stakeholders and who stands to benefit or lose?
How will the line change the neighborhoods along its route?
What role does the media play in presenting the LRT case?
What is the proposed future of LRT and will it be effective?

Can't wait for LRT? Take a trial tour

A model of the light-rail cars ordered for the Hiawatha Avenue light-rail line will be on public display from 11:30 to 1 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in front of the Hennepin County jail at 401 4th Av. S., in downtown Minneapolis throughout the month of November.

from www.startribune.com

Page Updated: 11/01/2002