The East-West Gateway Board of Directors adopted the 11.5 mile Florissant Ave. alignment as the locally preferred alternative (LPA) as a part of the Green Line Bus Rapid Transit study underway in the Northside-Southside corridor in the City of St. Louis. This is the next step in the process as the study moves forward in the project development phase for the federal Capital Investment Grant funding process.
The Florissant Ave. Alignment serves two times more area than the former proposed light rail project at a third of the estimated cost. The current alignment includes 23 proposed station locations, connection to St. Louis County in the north at Goodfellow and Natural Bridge, access to Meramec on the south, and matches up with the region’s Connected 2050 goals including expanding access, job connectivity, and support of downtown. In addition, the project’s estimated cost is $360-590 million. According to the consulting team, this number will be better fleshed out as engineering progresses.
The North Florissant BRT alignment will operate more like light rail, using dedicated lanes, priority traffic signals at intersections, enhanced stations and faster boarding to provide more reliable travel times. It will connect to the current MetroLink Blue and Red lines and other MetroBus routes via the Civic Center. The alignment will also reach employment centers, healthcare services, more than 22 elementary, middle and high schools, and popular destinations such as Union Station, City Hall and Brickline Greenway.
In addition, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) granted an extension for the project to develop to 30 percent design by June 2027. The approval today of the project as the LPA moves the project into the NEPA phase and completion of preliminary engineering. If federal funding is awarded, the project is expected to begin construction by 2029.
History of the Project
In September of 2025, the Bi-State Development Board of Commissioners approved a modification to the Northside-Southside Study Contract to pivot to Bus Rapid Transit from light rail. The 15-month, $10 million study underway covers program management, environmental work, alternative analysis and preliminary design of the project up to 30 percent.
The need to explore the validity of a BRT system in lieu of the St. Louis MetroLink Green Line came as a result of several factors. The information developed through 30 percent design phase of the proposed $1.2 billion St. Louis MetroLink Green Line project, coupled with the state of federal funding for transit, led to a determination by Metro Transit and its consulting team that the project was potentially not fundable at the federal level. During this same time frame, Mayor Cara Spencer expressed interest in determining a more economically viable means for providing transit access in the corridor.
The Federal Transit Administration has agreed that this shift in mode evaluation is acceptable for this proposed project to remain in the project development phase for the possible Capital Investment Grant (CIG) or Small Starts Program funding process. At the same time, Metro Transit has been directed to look into the 2017 City Sales Tax funding source to ensure it can legally remain a local funding match for the revised project.
The City of St. Louis is currently looking at going back to the voters on the 2017 City Sales Tax wording to ensure it can remain a funding source for the revised project.
