Metro Gold Line (Minnesota)

The METRO Gold Line is an under construction bus rapid transit line in Minnesota. The line will travel from downtown Saint Paul, Minnesota to the eastern terminus in Woodbury, Minnesota. The 10-mile line runs largely along I-94 in bus-only lanes with stops at designated stations. The Gold Line will be the first bus rapid transit project in Minnesota that operates primarily in bus lanes. The project was initially called the Gateway Corridor before being named a color to match the rest of the Metro system operated by Metro Transit.

Vehicles on the route will be a mix of diesel and electric buses. Buses will arrive approximately every 10-15 minutes. Four park-and-rides are being constructed at stations along the route. Construction on the line began in 2022. The project is expected to open on March 22, 2025.

History
Originally, the Gateway Corridor was planned to follow Interstate 94 from the St. Croix River Bridge in Wisconsin to Saint Paul and is one of the most heavily used and traveled corridors in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. As a result of recent population growth, the Gateway Corridor today moves more than 150,000 vehicles per day. In 2009, a commission was created to study and plan alternative transportation options in the corridor.

In August 2010, the Gateway Corridor Commission and its consultant team initiated a Transit Alternatives Analysis Study (AA), looking at the corridor from the Twin Cities to Eau Claire, Wisconsin. This is the first step in determining the best mode (i.e. light rail, commuter rail or bus rapid transit); estimated ridership, possible routes and stops, and projected costs to build, operate and maintain. In looking at these four main areas, the study helped to address the issues of congestion, potential economic development/revitalization and environmental and social impacts.

The AA Study was expected to take approximately 18 months to complete and is expected to be finished by spring 2012. Final decisions regarding the mode of transit and route will be determined by the Metropolitan Council and Ramsey and Washington County Regional Railroad Authorities. These decisions will help move this from a planning effort into a real, tangible project.

The Gateway Corridor Commission dropped the commuter rail option, leaving only possible bus rapid transit or light rail routes. All of the bus rapid transit route options would run on Interstate 94.

Bus rapid transit project development
The project was originally expected to end in Lake Elmo, Minnesota. Lake Elmo is known for having a lower density of housing than other suburbs in the area and local city council members had considered adding density to the city near I-94 and the Gold Line in order to preserve a more rural character elsewhere in the city. Years earlier, the city tusseled with the Metropolitan Council over the Metropolitan Council's directive that Lake Elmo increase density within the city. The Lake Elmo city council voted unanimously to support the project in 2014 but by 2016 the city council with several newly elected members voted against allowing the project to end within the city.

The project also faced opposition from residents in Oakdale, Minnesota and a non-profit formed to fight the project called Citizens for Smart Transit.

Washington County spent some money collected through the Counties Transit Improvement Board on planning for the Gold Line. Money from the Counties Transit Improvement Board had been mostly spent on projects in the western metropolitan area which led Gold Line supporters to argue that more transit funding should be spent in the east metro including on projects like the Gold Line.

Project approval
The proposed bus rapid transit line would go from downtown Saint Paul to Woodbury and was proposed to be built by 2024. The project was renamed from the Gateway Corridor to the METRO Gold Line. The line would cost $485 million in 2021 dollars with 45% of that coming from federal sources. The Gateway Corridor Commission estimates 8,600 weekday riders by 2040. The Metropolitan Council approved the locally preferred alternative in December 2016. The project began New Starts Project Development in January 2018. After passing the National Environmental Policy Act with a Finding Of No Significant Impact from the FTA in January 2020, the Metropolitan Council declared no additional environmental review was needed for the project in March 2020.

The project was given a "medium-high" rating by the Federal Transit Administration in March 2021. The rating allows the project to continue into the engineering phase of the FTA's New Starts program. The "medium-high" rating was an improvement over the "medium-low" rating that the project received in January 2020. By adding 350 park-and-ride spaces, ridership projections increased which improved the project's rating. Utility work for the project could start as soon as the summer of 2021.

With 3 years needed until service could start, developments worth $200-290 million were proposed along the line by April 2021.

Features and service
Buses would run 90% of the time on new roads that run next to existing roads and highways. Service would be every 10 minutes during peak times and 20 - 30 during other times. Travel times from end to end for the 12 stations would take at least 34 minutes. Buses will operate in bus only lanes for 70% of the 10 mile long project. Construction was officially kicked off on October 19, 2022. Construction is expected to be completed and service begin in 2025.

Five of seventeen buses used on the route are expected to be 60-foot articulated electric buses. Electric buses in the Twin Cities were first used on the Metro C Line in 2019. The buses and chargers will be purchased from New Flyer for around $10.8 million. The electric buses are expected to operate 9 trips a day while the diesel buses will operate 38 trips a day.

Construction
Construction officially began in October 2022. The project is expected to cost $505 million. In April 2023, $238 million from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was secured. An additional $120 million from Ramsey County and Washington County will also fund the project. Major construction was expected to take place during the 2023 and 2024 construction seasons with an official opening expected in 2025. Construction on the East Side of Saint Paul concerned local business owners who experienced reduced access to their businesses and reduced customer traffic.

A new bridge over Interstate 94 opened in December 2023 at a cost of $9 million. $7.5 million of the cost was paid for by the federal government. The Bielenberg Bridge connects Helmo Ave in Oakdale and Bielenberg Drive in Woodbury. The bridge carries general traffic but will also have dedicated bus lanes for the Gold Line.