21 replies to this topic

[KevinKorell]

Metro Transit website:

 

 

 

                                         Metro Transit’s response to COVID-19 (coronavirus)

 

Understandably, the spread of COVID-19 has raised questions about how we're responding here at Metro Transit.

 

We are committed to doing everything we can to help keep our customers and employees safe while continuing to provide the essential transportation services our region depends on.

 

In practice, that means regularly communicating with public health experts and preparing to respond to any new developments. At this time, state public health experts continue to stress that we all have a responsibility to help prevent the spread of germs by:

• Regularly and thoroughly washing our hands
• Coughing/sneezing into a tissue or a sleeve
• Staying home when we feel sick

To supplement these efforts, we have stepped up our cleaning efforts and are regularly disinfecting our buses, trains and public facilities. 

 

While these precautionary measures are important, they are just one part of the larger, community-led effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. Please continue to do your part by staying informed and following the advice of the Minnesota Department of Health. Visit the Department of Health’s website for the latest updates. 

[KevinKorell]

KSTP-TV, Channel 5 in Minneapolis, MN, 3/16/20:

 

   Metro Transit to suspend overnight service due to COVID-19 concerns   

 

 

Metro Transit announced Monday that it will suspend overnight services due to the COVID-19 outbreak. 

 

According to a news release, bus and light rail service will be suspended from 11 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. beginning Tuesday.

 

Read

[KevinKorell]

KSTP-TV, Channel 5 in Minneapolis, MN, 3/18/20:

 

 

   Union leader says more Metro Transit bus, light rail service changes likely 

 

 

 

The head of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1005 told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS there will "likely be more changes in bus and light rail schedules" as Metro Transit, and its passengers, navigate restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

 

Story

[KevinKorell]

Minneapolis, MN Star-Tribune, 3/23/20:

 

  Metro Transit to cut service by 40% starting Wednesday  

 

Metro Transit is slashing service on buses and light-rail trains by 40% starting Wednesday as the agency responds to the rapidly spreading coronavi that led to a steep drop in ridership over the past week.

 

Article

[KevinKorell]

Twin Cities Pioneer Press, St. Paul, MN, 4/16/20:

 

  Metro Transit announces further reductions in light rail service    

 

 

 

Metro Transit will further reduce the operating hours of its two light rail lines in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Details

[KevinKorell]

KSTP-TV, 5-ABC in Minneapolis, MN, 5/15/20:

 

   Metro Transit to strongly advise face coverings for those who ride the bus, light rail train   

 

 

 

Friday, Metro Transit announced face coverings will be strongly advised while riding buses or light rail trains, effective Monday, in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

 

Update

[KevinKorell]

KMSP-TV, Fox-9 in Minneapolis, MN, 6/24/20:

 

  Metro Transit to increase service on some light rail and bus routes starting Saturday  

 

 

 

As ridership demand increases amid loosening COVID-19 restrictions in Minnesota, Metro Transit is extending service for some of its light rail lines and bus routes, according to the agency's spokesman.

 

Update

[KevinKorell]

Twin Cities Pioneer Press, St. Paul, MN, 8/21/20:

 

    Metro Transit to resume near-normal local bus, light rail schedule, but express bus and Northstar remain clipped  

 

 

 

 

By mid-September, Metro Transit will resume near-normal levels of light rail and local bus service, which had been trimmed since late March due to the pandemic.

 

Full story

[CNJRoss]

Star Tribune, Minneapolis, MN 10/15/20

Transit officials consider future of Minnesota's Northstar rail line

Ridership has plunged by 95% during the pandemic.

 

 

After several dozen passengers boarded the 4:27 p.m. Northstar Thursday at the Target Field stop, the locomotive edged forward and departed right on time.

 

If it weren’t for passengers wearing telltale masks, it could have been any other fall afternoon. But ridership on Northstar, a commuter train that connects downtown Minneapolis to Big Lake while running through the Twin Cities’ northern suburbs, has plunged about 95% since the COVID-19 outbreak.

 

As the Metropolitan Council considers harsh budget realities for public transportation next year, the fate of Northstar has come into sharper focus. Should it be shut down temporarily? Should buses replace train service? And what’s the status of the long-proposed extension to St. Cloud?

 

Continue here.

[KevinKorell]

KSTP-TV, 5-ABC in Minneapolis, MN, 12/17/20:

 

   Metro Transit works on adding new plastic seats to light rail trains    

 

 

In an effort to help with maintenance and cleaning, Metro Transit is working to install plastic seats on its light rail trains.

 

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