Can Big D and G.R. learn from the T.C.?

[Andre' Wiegand]

Living in the T.C.'s (Minni-St. Paul) for seven years was a blast! Uptown, Dinkytown, Calhoun lake/park, etc...no end to the quality of life amenities.

One thing our states two biggest cities can learn from is the mass transit initiative put forth by the MET Council of the T.C. Specifically the light rail projects. Ridership is threw the roof and that was before the spike in gas prices! They are currently planning two more major light rail lines with more to come....
And this is nothing to say about the fantastic bus system that exists as well.

I would love to hear at CCS2.0 a few things about this:
How did they accomplished this?
Was it due in part to the organizational structure of the MET Council?
How was funding obtained?

Mass Transit is a huge piece that we (MI) need to address if we want to draw the creative class. See N.Y, Chic., Minn, Boston, etc...

Any thoughts?

Thanks and see everyone at MOCAD.

[Rory Neuner]

Andre', good post. Mass transit is not just a creative class magnet, it is essential for improving the prosperity of current residents. Transit can help provide needed connections between jobs and housing, and by reducing transportation expenses, people will have more money in their pocket to spend on other goods and services, or to save.

As you might be aware, the good news is that several plans are in the works for moving mass transit in SE Michigan beyond just the People Mover and the bus system. TRU has a nice summary here. There are also several bills in the state legislature to address some of the funding issues that currently hamper transit agencies.

As far as lessons from the Twin Cities', I think Southeast Michigan has a lot to learn from the regional cooperation spurred by the strength and vision of groups like the MET Council, or METRO in Portland.

[Eric Brown]

I completely agree with you, and have used the light rail MET in Minneapolis to get from the airport to downtown for the last couple of years; it is great and pretty well done. I spent a lot of time in downtown Minneapolis while building apartment buildings for Village Green Companies in Uptown, Lake Calhoun, and Loring Park, and really loved that city.