The consulting team led by AECOM continue to move forward on the Northside Southside MetroLink Study. More than 229 people cam out in January to see the findings and provide input.
Attendees heard the following at the open houses in January:
- List of benefits and impacts of on-street light rail – the first of its kind in St. Louis
- Total cost for the entire route: $1.3 billion
- Estimated ridership for entire route: 17,000 per day
- Segment 1-7: Entire route broken into 7 segments with cost and ridership estimates
- Station area market analyses for eight stations; visualizations of potential future development for four of those stations (Cass, Gravois, Cherokee and Osceola Stations)
Key Findings:
- Total cost for the entire route is estimated at $1.3 billion with an estimated 17,000 total ridership per day.
- It is recommended that Northside-Southside be built in phases. Consultants estimate the potential budget for the first phase will be up to $700 million based on Proposition 1 funding and potential federal transit funding. The project will not move forward without federal funding.
- Frequency of trains would be every 12 minutes during peak hours and every 20 minutes off-peak.
- The three North St. Louis alternatives are not significantly different in terms of cost and ridership, although they have different numbers of residents or job locations served. The study team will continue to do outreach in North St. Louis and survey the public about their preferences among these options.
The final project recommendations will be presented to the public late this spring for final review.
What you can do now:
- Review the boards and route map on the project website at http://www.northsidesouthsidestl.com/
- Submit your comments and questions on the homepage forms.