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In this Issue
Now that Nicollet Mall is cleared, and
all systems are running back to normal, I wanted to briefly reflect on the game
our region hosted earlier this month. Prior to the event, Super Bowl 52 was
being lauded as the most transit centric Super Bowl to date. This reality presented
both opportunities and challenges for our region and for Metro Transit.
So much preparation on the local,
regional, and national levels go into this event each year, with each host city
experiencing its own set of challenges. Having two major light rail lines stop
at the front steps of US Bank Stadium made transit a key partner in gameday
planning, but also presented barriers for our local riders who continued to
rely on service for day-to-day travel. Increased levels of bus and rail transit
were deployed throughout the region during the two-week celebrations to make
the security and game-day closures as painless for our customers as possible.
While data is still being analyzed for Super Bowl weekend,
what we do know is the region saw a significant boost in transit ridership
during the week preceding it. According to a preliminary count, more than
290,000 bus, light rail and Northstar rides were provided on Saturday, Jan. 27,
and Sunday, Jan. 28, about one-third more than a typical weekend. The weekend
total included more than 118,000 light rail rides, a 72% increase from the
previous weekend’s light rail ridership. The busiest boarding locations were
the Mall of America, Nicollet Mall and 28th Avenue stations.
More than 7,800
express bus rides were provided to and from five regional park-and-rides where
special service was provided on Jan. 27 and Jan. 28.
And on Feb. 4, thousands of Super Bowl ticket holders took
light rail to the game, with a tremendous crowd gathering at the Mall of
America hours before our first scheduled METRO Blue Line departure. Despite
that early influx and a flurry of last-minute ticket sales, everyone who rode
with us arrived at the game safely and on time.
None of
these numbers or anecdotes would be possible without the people that work at
Metro Transit. I specifically want to highlight our operators, who skillfully
navigated heavy traffic and readily stepped forward to provide additional
service when needed.
While I
think we can all agree that a hometown team would have made the Super Bowl
memorable, I am pleased that our system was able to carry out of town fans and
local riders where they needed to go.
Steve
Chávez
District 15, Council Member
 The Metropolitan Council is considering new policies related to wastewater reuse, as an outgrowth of a community-based customer task force.
The Council will hold two workshops and a public hearing to inform the public about and accept comments on three wastewater reuse related alternative policy amendments to its Water Resources Policy Plan. Wastewater
reuse—treating and reusing wastewater—is a potential strategy to benefit the
regional wastewater system, sustain the region’s groundwater supplies and
support economic growth in the seven-county region.
Public Hearing
Metropolitan Council
390 Robert Street North
Saint Paul, MN
Room LLA
Tuesday, March 13, 2018
2:30 to 3:30 PM
Learn more about the proposed policies and the upcoming
events.
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 Visitors
to the Metro Mobility website will notice big changes as the Council rolls
out a new look and organization to the site this week. In response to feedback
from users, the site has been reorganized, simplified, and is more compatible
with mobile devices.
Visit the new site.
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Gov. Mark Dayton has
advanced three Metropolitan Council initiatives in his 2018 bonding bill. The
major line items include:
- $50 million for regional bus
rapid transit projects (like the A Line).
- $50 million for the Heywood II
Bus Garage.
- $5 million for a Council
partnership with Metro Cities to reduce municipal infiltration and inflow
(I&I), which is clean water seeping into the wastewater treatment
system.
The funds are part of Dayton’s overall
$1.5 billion bonding proposal. Most of the money is focused on restoring aging
buildings in Minnesota’s public higher education system, upgrading sewer and
water infrastructure, improving and repairing state buildings, and investing in
road, bridge, and transit infrastructure and affordable housing.
Learn more about what the funding will accomplish.
Every e-newsletter, I
will ask a Council trivia question and the first two people who email the
correct answer, I'll treat them to coffee at their time
and place of choice in the district.
Trivia question: In Chair Tchourumoff's monthly online column, the Chair's Message, what has she outlined as the Council's three priorities during the 2018 legislative session?
Email answers to steven.chávez@metc.state.mn.us. |
