>Transit+Transportation > Central Corridor > Public Involvement

History of the Central Corridor project

February 27, 2008 – Metropolitan Council approves $909 million project scope. Key features include a transit-pedestrian mall on Washington Avenue on the University of Minnesota East Bank campus, making the front of St. Paul’s Union Depot the eastern terminus, building a vehicle maintenance facility on Ramsey County-owned land near the depot and constructing 15 stations, with infrastructure for three future stations.

October 1, 2007 - Central Corridor project office opens in the Griggs-Midway Building on University Avenue.

February 14, 2007 - Metro Council and the Central Corridor Partnership names a Business Advisory Council to provide an avenue for input.  The committee meets monthly and is co-chaired by Lori Fritts, Midway Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, and Jim Roth, a Minneapolis business person.

January 10, 2007 - Metro Council names a Community Advisory Committee to provide an avenue for public input.  The committee meets monthly and is chaired by Jerry Blakey, former St. Paul City Council Member and small business owner.

December 13, 2006 - FTA gives its approval to begin preliminary engineering on Central Corridor.  During this two-year phase, the project is designed to approximately 60 percent.  The Council and project partners finalize station locations, refine and finalize - project costs, benefits and impacts, finalize management plans, demonstrate the ability to develop the project and identify and commit local funding sources.

October 11, 2006 - Metro Council establishes a project management structure, and names a Corridor Management Committee to provide oversight. The committee is chaired by the Metro Council Chair Peter Bell.

June 30, 2006 - Project transitions to Metro Council, which submits a “New Starts” application to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) requesting permission to initiate Preliminary Engineering.

FTA’s discretionary New Starts program is the federal government’s primary financial resource for supporting major transit capital investments that are locally planned, implemented and operated. Projects approved for the New Starts program must undergo evaluation by the FTA throughout the entire project development process.
FTA evaluates proposed New Starts projects according to the following criteria: mobility improvements, environmental benefits, cost effectiveness, operating efficiencies, transit-supportive land use and future patterns, capital and operating finances, among others.

June 28, 2006 - Metropolitan Council selects “locally preferred alternative” after receiving the recommendation of the Central Corridor Coordinating Committee.

May 22, 23, and 24, 2006 - RCRRA holds a series of public hearings that were attended by almost 600 people. RCRRA receives almost 1000 public comments via phone, email, letters and public testimony. See a summary of the comments (pdf).

April 21, 2006 - RCRRA releases the Alternatives Analysis and Draft Environmental Impact Statement.  The DEIS is a public document prepared to provide information about the design, benefits, and costs of proposed transportation improvements. It also allows for the examination of social, economic, transportation, and environ-mental impacts that may result from the implementation of the project. See the Citizens Guide to the DEIS (pdf).

June 5, 2001 – After initial planning activities that date back as far as 1981, Ramsey County Regional Railroad Authority (RCRRA) notices its intent to prepare an Alternatives Analysis and Environmental Impact Statement for the Central Corridor.  As part of its public involvement efforts, RCRRA holds nearly 80 meetings with Central Corridor stakeholders. 

See Central Corridor project timeline and next steps.