In Downtown Minneapolis, Hennepin Avenue serves as a major entertainment thoroughfare, dubbed the Hennepin Theatre District. It also serves as the dividing line between "North" and "South" street addresses. Across the river, it divides "Northeast" and "Southeast" street addresses.[2]
The street has achieved iconic status in Minneapolis culture, memorialized in songs by Tom Waits, The Hold Steady and Lucinda Williams, among others. Its 600 block downtown was once home to Block E, a sometimes-rowdy collection of bars and independent businesses ultimately acquired by the city and demolished in 1988.[6] It is also a popular parade route, used by the annual Aquatennial celebration held in July, and since the 1990s has been the traditional route of the city's LGBTQ Pride parade.
Infrastructure
Once a two-way avenue, the Theatre District portion was changed in 1980 to a one-way northbound with a bus-only lane southbound. "The Environmental Protection Agency was concerned with the air quality in downtown Minneapolis. Turning the streets into one-way lowered the near dangerous high levels of pollution".[7] However, on October 10, 2009, it reverted to a two-way street, with its bike lanes being transferred one block west to First Avenue (which was also switched from one-way to two-way at the same time).[8] This change was hoped by the city to create urban vibrancy, quicker travel times, and to avoid confusing one-ways. Hennepin Avenue has been under construction between Washington Avenue and 12th Street since 2019 to improve the pedestrian experience, add bikeways, and enhance transit stops. Construction will continue through 2022.[needs update][9][10]
Hennepin Avenue south of downtown is a major transit thoroughfare with 400 bus trips and 3,300 rides on the street each weekday. Travel speeds in the corridor for transit were among the slowest in the Twin Cities.[11] In the morning peak, buses accounted for 3% of vehicles in the corridor but moved 49% of people.[12] A three day trial of bus only lanes was instituted in May 2018. Curb-side parking space was converted to bus-only lanes on portions of the route during rush hour with a northbound lane into downtown during the morning peak and southbound out of downtown in the afternoon peak.[13] Operation on the lane was challenging with only 10-foot wide lanes.[14] Still, during the pilot travel times were reduced by 20% when the bus lanes were in use.[15] The lanes were made permanent with red paint in September 2019.[16][11] The bus lanes on Hennepin Avenue have reduced delays by up to 36% during typical traffic days and up to 81% on days with heavy congestion or weather events.[17] The future Metro E Line will travel on Hennepin Avenue through south Minneapolis and downtown before branching off into Marcy Holmes after crossing the Mississippi River.[18][19]
The city of Minneapolis applied and was awarded $7 million in federal money for the reconstruction of the avenue in 2018. The project limits stretch from Lake Street in Uptown to just north of Franklin Avenue.[20][21] This stretch of Hennepin Avenue was last reconstructed in 1957. Proposed designs for the project would add bus lanes, an off-street bike path, and wider sidewalks with space added by removing a through lane and curb-side parking. Lanes would be dedicated to buses at all times rather than the just directional peak periods that they are today. The street would be slimmed from two through lanes in each direction with parking on either side, to one through lane in each direction, a center turn lane at select intersections, a bus lane in each direction, and an off-street bike path. To accommodate the redesign, 90% of street parking on the corridor would be removed. Some business owners opposed the proposed changes and potential loss of street parking.[22] With 3,600 parking spaces within one block of Hennepin Avenue on side streets or within parking lots, less than 10% of the area's parking is street parking directly on Hennepin Avenue.[23][24] The proposed design is in line with Minneapolis city policy on Vision Zero, Complete Streets and the city's Transportation Action Plan. Every state representative and state senator from Minneapolis signed a letter of support for all day bus lanes and emphasized the need for all-day bus lanes for the success of the E Line.[25] The $32 million reconstruction would not start until 2024.[26]
The city council's Public Works and Infrastructure committee approved the proposed layout in May 2022.[27]Margaret Anderson Kelliher, the city's Public Works Director reversed the city's earlier proposal of 24/7 bus lanes in favor of dynamic bus lanes that would only be reserved for transit in certain hours and used as parking during other times.[28] A campaign to keep 24/7 bus lanes led to 20,000 emails sent to city officials and support from the Sierra Club and advocacy organizations Move Minnesota, Our Streets Minneapolis, and Hennepin For People.[27] Objections to the removal of 24/7 bus lanes by some city council members moved the bus lane decision to the full city council where it was approved by an 8-5 vote. Mayor Jacob Frey vetoed the decision for 24/7 bus lanes and an attempt by the city council to override the veto failed by 1 vote.[29]
A public information request for data surrounding the bus lane decision revealed that public works staff considered dynamic parking lanes to "pose a moderate to high risk" to the Metro E Line, an analysis that was not presented to the city council committee in charge of approving the design. Bus lane advocates argued that the analysis was withheld from the city council and the chair of the city council committee in charge of approving the design said the omission "raises eyebrows".[30][31] Ultimately, the city council approved a plan for bus lanes that are operational six hours a day. Currently bus lanes in the corridor operate for two hours each weekday.[32][33]
Construction is expected to begin in 2024 and completed after 2 years. The E Line is expected to open in 2025.[28]
The 2002 GLBT Pride Parade on Hennepin Avenue, photographed from the skyway. The intersection shown is 9th and Hennepin, the subject of a song by the same name by Tom Waits.
Nye's Polonaise on East Hennepin, voted "The Best Bar in America" by Esquire in 2006;[34] partially demolished in 2016 for redevelopment and renovation
The Metro Blue Line is a 12-mile (19.3 km) light rail line in Hennepin County, Minnesota, that is part of the Metro network. It travels from downtown Minneapolis to Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport and the southern suburb of Bloomington. Formerly the Hiawatha Line prior to May 2013, the line was originally named after the Milwaukee Road's Hiawatha passenger train and Hiawatha Avenue, reusing infrastructure from the former and running parallel to the latter for a portion of the route. The line opened June 26, 2004, and was the first light rail service in Minnesota. An extension, Bottineau LRT, is planned to open in 2028.
Nicollet Mall is a twelve-block portion of Nicollet Avenue running through downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It is a shopping and dining district of the city, and also a pedestrian mall and transit mall. Along with Hennepin Avenue to the west, Nicollet Mall forms the cultural and commercial center of Minneapolis.
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. Although Metro Transit is one of the smallest transit systems for a large metropolitan area in the United States, it has previously been ranked as one of the best. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 44,977,200, or about 145,600 per weekday as of the fourth quarter of 2023.
Lake Street is a major east-west thoroughfare between 29th and 31st streets in Minneapolis, Minnesota United States. From its western most end at the city's limits, Lake Street reaches the Chain of Lakes, passing over a small channel linking Bde Maka Ska and Lake of the Isles, and at its eastern most end it reaches the Mississippi River. In May 2020, the Lake Street corridor suffered extensive damage during local unrest following the murder of George Floyd. In August of the same year, city officials designated East Lake Street as one of seven cultural districts to promote racial equity, preserve cultural identity, and promote economic growth.
The Southwest LRT is an under–construction 14.5-mile (23.3 km) light rail transit corridor in Hennepin County, Minnesota, with service between Minneapolis and Eden Prairie. The estimated one-way travel time from Southwest Station in Eden Prairie to Target Field Station in Minneapolis is 32 minutes. The Southwest LRT will extend through St. Louis Park, Hopkins and Minnetonka along the route. Major locations on the line will include Bde Maka Ska, Cedar Lake, the Walker Art Center, the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden and Target Field in downtown Minneapolis.
The Minnesota Valley Transit Authority, also known by the acronym MVTA, is a public transportation agency that serves seven communities in the southern portion of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. The agency provides fixed-route and demand-responsive transit within the service area of the communities and to select destinations in the region.
Margaret Anderson Kelliher is an American politician, Director of the Minneapolis Department of Public Works, former Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Transportation, and a former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, she represented District 60A, which includes portions of the city of Minneapolis in Hennepin County, located in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. First elected in 1999, she served until 2011, also serving as the Speaker from 2007 to 2011. She is the second woman to hold the position of House speaker. She was an unsuccessful candidate for the DFL nomination for Governor of Minnesota in the 2010 gubernatorial election, losing to former Senator Mark Dayton. Anderson left the Minnesota House of Representatives at the conclusion of her term in 2011 and re-entered politics when she ran for the DFL nomination to the U.S. House of Representatives in Minnesota's 5th congressional district in 2018, losing to Ilhan Omar. Since 2019 Kelliher, has worked in transportation management roles for the government, first as Commissioner of MnDOT, and later as Director of Public Works for the city of Minneapolis.
The Metro Red Line is a bus rapid transit line between the Twin Cities suburbs of Bloomington, Minnesota and Apple Valley, Minnesota. The Red Line travels primarily on Minnesota State Highway 77 and Cedar Avenue from the Apple Valley station in Apple Valley, north through Eagan, Minnesota, to the Mall of America station in Bloomington where it connects to the Metro Blue Line. The line has bus rapid transit elements including bus-only lanes, specially branded vehicles, transit signal priority, and dedicated stations.
Plymouth Metrolink is the public transit system that serves Plymouth, Minnesota. Metrolink operates fixed-route bus routes Monday-Friday during peak periods with limited midday service. Most routes serve downtown Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota with one route providing reverse commute service from Minneapolis to employers in Plymouth. Demand-responsive bus service is available seven days a week. Most buses are provided by the Metropolitan Council with First Transit operating the fixed-route service.
The Bottineau LRT is a proposed light rail line extension in the Minneapolis – Saint Paul Metro area, projected to run northwest from Target Field station in downtown Minneapolis along County Road 81 to Brooklyn Park.
The Minneapolis Streetcar System was a proposed streetcar system for the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Extensive studies and plans for the new system were completed in 2007 and presented to the Minneapolis City Council in January 2008; on April 2, 2010, the Council voted to approve the plans and seek funding. On December 21, 2010 the Federal Transit Administration granted $900,000 to further study the Nicollet and Central Avenue corridors. In June 2021, after no further development on the system, a bill authorized the Metropolitan Council to use funds collected for the Nicollet-Central line to be spent on bus rapid transit funding.
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.
Metro is a transit network in Minnesota serving the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul. It also provides service to some suburban areas. As of 2022, the system consists of two light rail lines and five bus rapid transit (BRT) lines all of which are operated by the local public transit company: Metro Transit. The five lines connect Downtown Minneapolis and St Paul with the Bloomington, Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport, Roseville, Richfield, Burnsville and Brooklyn Center.
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.
The Metro B Line is an under construction bus rapid transit route in Minneapolis and St. Paul. The route will operate mostly on Lake Street in Minneapolis before crossing the Mississippi River into St. Paul and operating mostly on Selby Avenue and ending in downtown St. Paul. The route was identified in Metro Transit's 2014 Arterial Transitway Corridors Study as one of eleven local routes to be upgraded to bus rapid transit. The route will have "train-like" features to speed up service, such as signal priority, all-door boarding, further stop spacing, and specialized vehicles. Planning and design was completed in 2021, with construction beginning in May 2023. The line will join a number of Metro Transit's future Metro system lines, as well as the currently operating A Line, C Line, and D Line. Full funding for the line was secured in October 2020 with a final $35 million from the state of Minnesota.
The Metro E Line is a planned bus rapid transit route in Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and Edina. The route will operate from Southdale Center Transit Center in Edina, Minnesota to Westgate station in Saint Paul. Running mostly on France Avenue, Hennepin Avenue, and University Avenue, the line will serve major destinations such as Southdale Center, Fairview Hospital, 50th & France, Linden Hills, Uptown, Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, Downtown Minneapolis, Dinkytown, the University of Minnesota, and Prospect Park. The route will have "train-like" features to speed up service and improve reliability, such as signal priority, bus lanes, all-door boarding, further stop spacing, and specialized vehicles. In 2019 planning and design were underway, with construction slated for 2023 and operations beginning a year later but that timeline has been moved back. The E Line would largely replace Route 6 which carries 9,000 trips each weekday. The project was fully funded with $60 million by the state of Minnesota in 2021 and is expected to open in 2025.
Ramp A/7th Street Transit Center is a bus rapid transit station in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. The transit center is a southbound station on the Metro C Line and D Line, as well as several local routes. The transit center is located inside of Ramp A, a 3,637 stall parking ramp built over sunken Interstate 394.
The Marq2 transit corridor is a north–south thoroughfare in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It consists of the parallel streets of Marquette and Second avenues in the downtown area. Each public streetway has two contraflow bus lanes with two lanes available for general-purpose traffic in the opposite direction. Vehicular transit flows south on Marquette Avenue and north on Second Avenue. The inner curb lane allows buses to stop for riders, while the second bus-only lane allows buses to pass each other along the corridor. Bus routes that operate on the corridor stop at every other block at an assigned gate with each route assigned a northbound and southbound gate. Gates are assigned letters A, B, C, or D on Marquette Avenue and E, F, G, and H on Second Avenue. Custom bus shelters are installed at each stop with heaters and real time transit information. The corridor primarily serves express buses operated by all five public transit agencies in the Twin Cities.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
