Purpose
The purpose of the Gateway Corridor project is to provide transit service to meet the existing and long-term needs for businesses and the traveling public within the project area. The work is led by the Gateway Corridor Commission, which is comprised of local elected officials, business and community leaders.
Community leaders along the corridor have worked tirelessly to explore transit options to make the region stronger, today and in the future. They believe the region’s ability to maintain a high quality of life and compete for economic opportunities rests, in part, on our ability to effectively move people and goods.
Location
The Gateway Corridor connects the east metro area to the greater Twin Cities region of Minneapolis and Saint Paul. The Gateway Corridor Gold Line BRT is a proposed bus rapid transit line that would run next to Interstate 94 for a little over 9 miles in an exclusive lane in Ramsey and Washington counties on or next to Hudson Road and 4th Street, then down Helmo Ave in Oakdale to Bielenberg Dr in Woodbury between the Union Depot in downtown Saint Paul and the Woodbury Theater Park and Ride. The exclusive bus lanes would not be added to I-94 but would be part of a separate bus-only system.
Map of Corridor
Service
All-day transit service would stop at multiple stations and include connections to the growing regional transit system. The Gold Line will better connect downtown Saint Paul with its east side neighborhoods and the suburban cities of Maplewood, Landfall, Oakdale, and Woodbury. It only would take approximately 25 minutes to get from the Woodbury Theater Park and Ride to the Union Depot.
Using the Gold Line, people will be able to make easy transfers at Union Depot to access amenities such as the Mall of America, Minneapolis/Saint Paul International Airport, Target Field, the veterans’ administration facilities, the University of Minnesota, and much more.
The project also intends to serve and draw riders from other greater metropolitan area because people will have the option of driving to park and ride stations. Workers in downtown St. Paul and Minneapolis will still be able to take the existing express buses to their jobs and utilize Gateway Corridor to get back to their cars in the middle of the day or late at night if they needed to stay at work late or enjoy social activities after work.
Today, there is no existing transit that provides people the ability to get to and from their destinations all-day throughout the corridor. For example, once Gateway Corridor is open a resident of the east side of St. Paul could get to their evening shift job in Oakdale or a Woodbury resident can get to their pharmacy in Sun Ray shopping center.
Timing
Gold Line BRT is anticipated to open for service in 2024. It would provide a focal point for new economic development opportunities as the region grows. This would be Minnesota’s first BRT line in an exclusive lane.
- The Gateway project proactively addresses growth in traffic congestion.
- It helps us compete regionally and nationally.
- It will provide a focal point for more concentrated development as the region grows.
- Transit is safe, less stressful and more convenient.
- Transit in the Gateway Corridor can help companies recruit and retain employees.
- Transit services in the Gateway Corridor will help seniors and others who can’t drive, or choose not to drive.