urbanMSP

Going from 6 to 12 round trips per day would be so beneficial if they were spread out, but people already have valid complaints about Northstar. I bet they could even run this schedule with the existing rolling stock.

My hypothetical for Northstar?
Repurpose it as regional rail. Departures from STC and Mpls every two hours.

Maybe leaving STC at 5 AM, 6, 6:30, 7, 7:30, 8, 10, Noon, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10
Leaving Mpls at 5, 7, 9, 11, 1, 3, 4, 4:30, 5, 5:30, 6, 7, 9, 11

Does anybody have any information or renderings of what the new Vikings LRT station will look like? With the extra traffic due to transfers (Downtown St. Paul to MOA) I'm guessing they would like the station to be in a different configuration than the "low traffic level" stations. I don't...

I was surprised there wasn't a fourth lane in each direction under Snelling. And it's nice to have four westbound lanes all the way from Snelling to 5th Street in Mpls.

foto- yes it should go to West Lake, but I particularly believe the stretch between Nicollet and West Lake should be built to LRT or near-LRT standards. This would enable re-route of SW to Nicollet ROW at some point in the future, should Nicollet/Central also become LRT at some distant point in the ...

Here's my thoughts on slight improvements to the Mpls streetcar plan 1. Consolidate all streetcar operations at grade on Nicollet Mall, not Nicollet and Hennepin. 2. Build in through-routing from Hennepin to University, Nicollet to Central, and Chicago to Broadway 3. For the University line, follow ...

I'm a big transit backer, but I hate to admit I agree with most of the criticism of this project... -distance from CBD -splitting LRT platforms to discourage blue/green transfers -large outdoor plaza is not a place to gather half of the year in MN weather -proximity to herc -incompatibility with fut...

MSPtoMKE you bring up a good point as well... with enhanced frequencies this would possibly serve as a shuttle between The Interchange and the downtown core... especially for commuters working east of Nicollet.

Except for during large events, why would we want two services stopping at two different stations along the same line? This would be the first and most logical transfer point between the Bottineau section of the Green Line and the Southwest section of the Blue Line.

That, and MSP-Rochester would extend easily to Lacrosse, Madison, Milwaukee and Chicago...

I'd rather see consistent branding of types of service used across multiple lines. Northstar could be commuter rail (think Sounder, Metra, etc) and Northern Lights Express could be the name for regional intercity service with spokes from MSP.

I am fine with cars on Nicollet between Franklin and Lake, but I really wish they had more median planters and midblock pedestrian refuges. This would lush up the space and make it easier to cross mid-block.

4 tracks? doesn't seem like it would accommodate growth in the future more than 1 or 2 other commuter lines.

After driving MN-56 a few times recently, the old CGW ROW between Rosemount and Dodge Center seems like it would have been ideal for HSR for much of the MSP-Rochester segment. Too bad it was abandoned.

If the concern is traffic/mobility/safety it seems grade separation would be easiest. If the concern is hazmat near mayo and a large population center, then I see some reason for the bypass idea. Additionally it should be studied how the existing ROW could accommodate HSR in the future, which may be...

they are bookend multi-modal hubs. the great rail cities have multiple train stations. we have two cores that need to be served. Seems like this would be a much better idea if all or nearly all service could through-route between the two stations, which it cannot. Northstar and NLX won't be able to...

Re: skyway to the library... They used to have some architectural plans up on the library site, and the 2nd floor showed provisions for skyways roughly midblock/midbuilding across Hennepin (!), Nicollet, and 4th. Re: security, yes I once worked on the 8th floor of the 414 Nicollet building and they ...

Makes me wonder why the greenway was built in such a way that constricts streetcar ROW.

With this on the SW corner of the block and the new Xcel midrise on the NW corner of the block, maybe that leaves room for Opus to eventually snag the surface lot on the NE corner and build another tower there

I haven't been in 414 Nicollet since they remodeled the lobby... any chance for a skyway to connect the Mezzanine level, either public or private? I know when they leased Renaissance Square employees walked across 5th all the time to get between the two buildings.