St. Paul mayor wants to speed up light rail

St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman says he's open to giving Green Line light rail trains more power over traffic lights at smaller intersections along University Avenue.

The change could speed travel times on the new transit line, which currently takes an average of 53 minutes to get from downtown St. Paul to downtown Minneapolis -- 5 minutes longer than Metro Transit predicted when the line opened last month.

Speaking at a question-and-answer session with residents Wednesday, Coleman promised to improve that performance.

"I wish we could say we're going to fix this tomorrow," he said. "We will make it much more efficient, much better. And we'll get those times down. But the fact of the matter is, it's not just about the quickest route between point A and point B. It's about all the other things that come with that."

Those other benefits include avoiding the headache and expense of finding a place to park, the mayor said.

While Metro Transit operates the line, St. Paul controls the traffic lights along it. Coleman said at busier intersections, it still makes sense for the trains to wait at red lights.