The second step is Northstar commuter rail. Bringing commuters from Central Minnesota and the northern suburbs to downtown Minneapolis on existing tracks makes sense. And, those commuters will have direct access to the airport and the Mall of America via Hiawatha light rail because of the connection in downtown. As part of Minnesota's overall transportation system, an integrated regional rail system has become increasingly critical to ensuring Minnesota's business climate, both in the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota, remains competitive. Commuter congestion on highways costs Minnesota's families and businesses time and money.
Commuter rail provides commuting choices to workers and employers throughout the corridor.
Commuter rail will ensure efficient, reliable transportation to and from work. With the groundbreaking today, Hiawatha moves into the final of three phases of development for passenger rail projects. The Northstar Corridor is currently completing phase one and expects to begin building the first stage of commuter rail service this spring with the construction of multimodal park and ride sites in Big Lake, Coon Rapids, Elk River and Ramsey. The sites will host a commuter bus service scheduled to begin operations in the fall of 2001. The Northstar line is a commuter rail project, meaning it will run on existing track currently used by railroads.