The oldest Light Rail Transit Line, the Blue Line, originally called the Hiawatha Light Rail will be shut down for 11 days from Monday September 22nd at 10 pm to Saturday October 4th. They will be replacing signals and sections of rail for “Phase 1.”

Phase 1? Are there more Phases? Yes there are 3 phases. Phase 2 for 45 days in 2026, and a 53 day one in 2027.

Phase 1 thru 3 Timeline Link

Will Buses have more Ridership than the LRT?

It will be interesting to see how commuters can do without a multi-million dollar Light Rail Line that seems to be down for maintenance quite often. When the Light Rail line started up 20+ yrs ago they had 3 rail cars per run. Though with fewer riders riding the train, last Winter they went to 2 cars. Maybe it was because they were losing money due to the increase in the cost of electricity.

Have they ever broke even on the LRTs?

Not even with “Transit Agents” are they ensuring that every rider on the LRT is paying to get onto it.

The Green Line will be in operation in St Paul, though it will stop at the Vikings Stadium. Beyond this station, buses will replace the Green Line.

There are links to see where to catch the bus near the Blue Line Stations below.

Blue Line LRT Closure & Bus Replacement Information Link

Blue Line Bus Replacement Bus Stop Location Maps

VA-Minneapolis Main Entrance will be Detoured from Sept 23rd 7 am to Sept 24th for maintenance.

One Veterans Dr., the main entrance to the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, will be closed Tues., Sept. 23 from 7:00 a.m. – Wed. Sept. 24. Metro Transit will be conducting rail crossing maintenance and repair that requires the intersection closure of Veterans Drive and Minnehaha Ave. Please follow the Veterans Drive Detour signs and allow extra time.

Travel Times between Stations on the Blue Line PDF

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information from the VA Newsletter, and from Metrotransit.org was used to write this post. — admin