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Operator | Rochester Public Transit | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Status | Planning | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Route type | Bus rapid transit | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Locale | Rochester, Minnesota | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Start | West Transit Village | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Via | 2nd Street SW (Phase 1) Broadway Avenue (Phase 2) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
End | Downtown Rochester (Phase 1) East Transit Village (Phase 2) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Length | 2.6 mi (4.2 km) (Phase 1) (Additional 1 mi (1.6 km) planned in Phase 2) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stations | 8 (Planned) (4 more planned in Phase 2) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Service | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Level | Daily | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Frequency | Every 5 minutes peak Every 10 to 20 minutes non-peak | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Journey time | 13 minutes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Operates | 5:00 am–11:00 pm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Link, previously known as Rochester Rapid Transit and the Downtown Circulator, is a bus rapid transit line planned for downtown Rochester, Minnesota. The 2.6 mile route would connect downtown Rochester, Mayo Clinic's downtown campus, Mayo Clinic's Saint Mary's campus, University of Minnesota Rochester, and a new 13-acre transit-oriented development at the western terminus. Construction is expected to begin in fall 2024, with operations commencing 2026. [1] [2] [3]
On May 4, 2020, the Rochester City Council unanimously approved a multi-phased approach to construction. The full system would be built in two phases: Phase 1 would be 2.6 miles (4.2 kilometres) built on Second Street from West Transit Village to Civic District station; Phase 2 would extend the line approximately 1 mile (1.6 kilometres) south on Broadway Avenue to East Transit Village. [4] The phased approach of the project would raise the cost-effectiveness rating with the Federal Transit Administration from "medium-high" to "high", making the project more competitive for funding through the Small Starts program. The phased approach also gives the city and Olmsted County additional time to plan the redevelopment of the former Seneca Foods site into East Transit Village. [5] On Wednesday October 21, 2020, project leaders announced that engineering, traffic, and environmental analyses would begin. [6]
Phase 1 of the project is expected to cost $114 million, with local funding coming from the State of Minnesota, Olmsted County Transit Aid, state provided Destination Medical Center funds, and the City of Rochester. On August 28, 2020, the City of Rochester submitted a Small Starts grant application to the Federal Transit Administration to fund 49% of Phase 1's cost. [7] [6] [1] Phase 2 will be developed with Olmsted County for future grant submittal. [8] [4]
The complete line is expected to cost $203 million. Estimated daily ridership on Phase 1 of the project is 9,925 daily riders, with the complete line seeing an estimated 11,850 daily riders. [5] [9] [10]
On September 13, 2021, Rochester officials unveiled the Link brand accompanied with a mockup station. The mockup, situated at the future Civic Center Station site on 2nd Street at 3rd Avenue SE, demonstrates bus rapid transit features such as the shelter layout, off-board fare collection, real-time signage, and an 80 ft (24 m) long level platform. The site also features renderings of the line's seven stations and more information about the project. [11] [12]
In early February 2022, Rochester City Council announced they would review potential changes to the line after receiving public feedback. The proposed changes would upgrade amenities at the two primary stations, Saint Mary's Transit Center and 2nd Avenue Station, and extend the line south along 3rd Avenue SE with an additional station near 6th Street. The changes under review would an additional year for environmental review and would bring the cost of Phase 1 to $146.8 million. The additional $32.8 million would be covered by the Federal Transit Administration, increasing their share of the project costs from 49% to 60%. [13]
The 2.6 mile route begins at Mayo Clinic's west lot at 2nd Street and 23rd Avenue SW. On August 25, 2020, the DMC Corporation Board of Directors voted unanimously to modify the DMC's boundaries to include the westernmost portion of the route, making the project eligible receive DMC funding. The route continues east along 2nd Street in dedicated bus lanes, stopping at five enhanced stations along 2nd Street. [8] After Broadway Avenue, the route would make a clockwise loop with two additional stops at 2nd Street & 3rd Avenue SE and 4th Street & Broadway Avenue before returning down 2nd Street the opposite direction. [14]
Link will use new 60 ft articulated battery electric buses with three-doors and will be operated by Rochester Public Transit. [6] [15]
Rochester is a city in and the county seat of Olmsted County, Minnesota, United States. Located on rolling bluffs on the Zumbro River's south fork in Southeast Minnesota, the city is the home and birthplace of Mayo Clinic.
The Silver Line is a system of bus routes in Boston and Chelsea, Massachusetts, operated by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). It is operated as part of the MBTA bus system, but branded as bus rapid transit (BRT) as part of the MBTA subway system. Six routes are operated as part of two disconnected corridors. As of 2019, weekday ridership on the Silver Line was 39,000.
Metro Transit is the primary public transportation operator in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the largest operator in the state. Metro Transit has previously been ranked as one of the best public transit systems in the United States. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 44,977,200, or about 145,600 per weekday as of the fourth quarter of 2023.
The Rochester Industrial and Rapid Transit Railway, more commonly known as the Rochester subway, was a light rail rapid transit line in the city of Rochester, New York that operated from 1927 to 1956. The subway was constructed in the bed of the old Erie Canal, which allowed the route to be grade-separated for its entire length. Two miles (3.2 km) of the route through downtown were constructed in a cut-and-cover tunnel that became Broad Street, and the only underground portion of the subway. The Rochester Subway was designed to reduce interurban traffic on city streets, and to facilitate freight interchange between the railroads. The line was operated on a contract basis by New York State Railways until Rochester Transit Corporation (RTC) took over in 1938. The last day of passenger service was June 30, 1956. Portions of the right-of-way were used for expressway construction, while the rest was abandoned and filled in over the years. The largest remaining section is a stretch of tunnel under Broad Street from Exchange Street to the intersection of Court Street and South Avenue.
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The Metro Orange Line is a bus rapid transit line in the Twin Cities, Minnesota operated by Metro Transit. The line operates primarily along Interstate 35W from downtown Minneapolis through Richfield and Bloomington before terminating in Burnsville, Minnesota. The Orange Line provides access to 198,000 jobs with roughly a quarter of them outside downtown Minneapolis. The route serves a mix of stations located in the center of the highway, stations near highway exits, and on-street stations. The line has features typical of bus rapid transit systems with off-board fare payment, articulated buses with extra doors, stations with improved passenger amenities, and transit-only bus lanes on portions of the route.
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Winnipeg RT is a bus rapid transit system of Winnipeg Transit in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, currently consisting of the Southwest Transitway. Future expansions are in the planning stages, consisting of an Eastern Corridor connecting downtown to Transcona and a West-North Corridor connecting St. James with Downtown and West Kildonan.
Rapid is the brand name given to the bus rapid transit system in San Diego County, California. The system serves nearly half the county, operating mainly on the HOV lanes on Interstates 15 and 805, with most of the stops also served by other routes. In addition, there are stations, dubbed as CenterLine in the medians of Interstate 15, Park Boulevard in San Diego and on East Palomar Street in Chula Vista, that are designed in a similar manner to the light rail stations. The system operates with a dedicated fleet, although buses from the Mainline fleet are regularly substituted. The system is administered, built and managed by San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) and is operated as part of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS).
The City Line is a bus rapid transit (BRT) line in Spokane, Washington, United States, that opened on July 15, 2023. The 6-mile-long (9.7 km) route, which is operated by the Spokane Transit Authority, runs from Spokane's Browne's Addition neighborhood, through Downtown Spokane and the University District, including the WSU Health Sciences campus and Gonzaga University, before ending at the Spokane Community College campus in the Chief Garry Park neighborhood. The project budget as of 2023 was $92.2 million.
The RapidRide G Line is a future RapidRide bus service in Seattle, Washington, operated by King County Metro on Madison Street between Downtown Seattle and Madison Valley. The line is projected to open for service on August 31, 2024, and cost $133.4 million.
The Green Line, also known as Route 203 is a light rail (LRT) line under construction in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The line will run between Calgary's north-central and southeastern boundaries, connecting with the Red Line and Blue Line in the city's downtown. The Green Line is the largest public infrastructure project in Calgary's history and will be the first rail line in the city to operate low-floor trains. When completed, the Green Line will comprise 29 stations spanning 46 kilometres (29 mi). This will bring the total number of CTrain stations in Calgary to 74.
The Metro C Line is a bus rapid transit line in Brooklyn Center and Minneapolis, Minnesota operated by Metro Transit. The line is part of Metro Transit's Metro network of light rail and bus rapid transit lines. The route operates from the Brooklyn Center Transit Center along Penn Avenue and Olson Memorial Highway, terminating in downtown Minneapolis. The route is analogous to the existing Route 19 and is projected to increase ridership on this corridor from 7,000 to 9,000 by 2030. Eventually, part of its route will shift south to Glenwood Avenue from Olson Memorial Highway.
The Metro D Line is a bus rapid transit line in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Minnesota. The 18.5-mile (29.8 km) route primarily operates on Fremont and Chicago Avenues from Brooklyn Center through Minneapolis to the Mall of America in Bloomington. As part of BRT service, the D Line features "train-like amenities" including improved station facilities, off-board fare payment, modern vehicles, fewer stops, and higher frequency. The current alignment would substantially replace the existing Route 5, the highest ridership bus route in Minnesota.
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