B Line Bus Updates

Note:
The information below was provided to us by Metro Transit's community engagement coordinator for the project, Cody Olson. You can reach him directly with your questions at bline@metrotransit.org.

The Summit-University Planning Council will be hosting community forums to discuss these proposed plans beginning this Month. Please watch our community calendar or Facebook page for more specific details. Help us raise some questions by reaching out now to let us know what you think about this project and what you would like to know more about.

By this summer, the draft corridor plan will go to Met Council for approval.

From Cody Olson, B Line Community Engagement Coordinator:

The METRO B Line is a planned bus rapid transit (BRT) line that will provide faster and more reliable transit service in the Route 21 (Selby-Lake) corridor. 
Based on initial planning work, Metro Transit has developed preliminary recommendations for the METRO B Line bus rapid transit corridor:
1. The B Line is now recommended to extend to downtown St. Paul, serving Lake Street, Marshall Avenue, and Selby Avenue. 

• Initial plans called for the METRO B Line to only go as far east as Snelling Avenue. The B Line will stop less frequently at improved stations with heat, light, and other amenities. Preliminary recommendations for the B Line include stops at 33 locations with an average of 2-3 stops per mile.
•     In the Summit-University neighborhood, this recommendation would mean a substantial     replacement of Route 21 service along Selby Avenue with faster, more frequent bus rapid     transit. 

•     METRO B Line stops in the Summit-University neighborhood are currently recommended along     Selby Avenue at Lexington Parkway, Victoria Street, Dale Street, and Western Avenue as well as     at the intersection of John Ireland Boulevard and Marshall Avenue by Saint Paul College.
  

2. In order to provide a faster and more reliable experience, the METRO B Line is planned to follow a more direct route than the Route 21 does today and will connect with the METRO A Line at Snelling & Dayton Station.

    West of the Summit-University neighborhood, this recommendation means that the METRO B     Line would follow a different route than the Route 21 does today and would stay south of I-94,     running on Marshall Avenue west of Snelling Avenue and running on Selby Avenue east of     Snelling Avenue.
3. In addition to B Line service, Route 21 is recommended to continue running on Lake Street in Minneapolis between Hennepin Avenue and Minnehaha Avenue every 30 minutes. 

•     Metro Transit is also continuing to study options for additional local bus service between Selby Avenue and the Midway area, including the potential continuation of service at local stops along     Selby Avenue within the Summit-University neighborhood as well as north-south connections to  University Avenue west of the Summit-University neighborhood. Recommendations for local service will be shared with the community for comments and feedback in Spring/Summer 2020. 

If you have any questions, thoughts, or feedback about the METRO B Line project, please contact Metro Transit staff via email at BLine@metrotransit.org or by phone at 612-349-7390.
For more information on the B Line project, please visit the project website or sign up for B Line updates.