Businesses, residents say 'Gateway Corridor' needs transit options
Cities and businesses along the Interstate 94 corridor from downtown St. Paul to the Wisconsin border say transit needs to be built along the route.
Residents are calling the stretch of 94 the Gateway Corridor, because of the amount of commuter and freight traffic entering from Wisconsin. DFL Sen. Kathy Saltzman of Woodbury said a two-year study funded by a transit tax will recommend transit options. Saltzman said cities and businesses along the corridor have helped organize the effort.
"They're going to be the advocates, they're going to be the people who stand up and say, 'we're next in line,'" Saltzman said. "That was the position of the legislature to have a balanced system and balance it in terms of geography and also in terms of opportunity."
Supporters say a proposed light rail line running from downtown Minneapolis to the southwestern suburbs should follow the Central Corridor project, but after that, the eastern metro needs consideration.
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The transit study will be complete in 2012.
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