Dec 11, 2007 12:11 pm US/Central
Feds Grant $156M For Northstar Rail Line
ANOKA, Minn. (AP) ―
-
-
The three counties must pay the BNSF Railway Company Co. $11 million by next Monday for track rights. (File)
Northstar Commuter Rail Project
State and federal officials signed documents Tuesday that bring nearly half of the funding for the $320 million Northstar commuter rail line between Minneapolis and Big Lake.
"We're delivering an investment so Northstar can move off the drawing board and onto the rails," Deputy Secretary of Transportation Thomas J. Barrett said at a signing ceremony.
The rail line is projected to be running in two years, providing more than 2 million rides along the corridor from downtown Minneapolis to the northwest. Once envisioned as a connector with St. Cloud, the line now runs about two-thirds of that distance.
Big Lake, Elk River, Coon Rapids, Anoka, downtown Minneapolis and Fridley will benefit from the project as commuters reduce drive time and save gas and parking money, project spokeswoman Jill Brown said.
The Northstar line has been a long time developing. After the Minneapolis bridge collapse in August, Minnesota Sens. Norm Coleman and Amy Klobuchar asked federal officials to speed up a $160 million funding request. Tuesday's signing delivered just a bit less than that -- $156.8 million.
Dave Van Hattum, of Transit for Livable Communities, called the Northstar line "only one piece" of the region's transportation puzzle.
"We need a stable, secure source of funding to make sure that we can pay for the growth in the existing system and to build new commuter and light rail lines," he said.
The federal funding was approved in October by the federal Office of Management and Budget and the Federal Transit Administration, and has since passed a mandatory 60-day review by Congress.
The state will pay $98.6 million of the line's cost, and the Anoka County Regional Rail Authority has pledged $34.8 million.
The Sherburne County Regional Rail Authority will provide $8.2 million, the Hennepin County Regional Rail Authority will supply $8 million, the Metropolitan Council will contribute $5.9 million, and the Minnesota Twins will kick in $2.6 million.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
