ST. PAUL, Minn. — The chair of the transportation committee in Minnesota’s House of Representatives is leading a legislative effort to kill the Northstar commuter rail service — which could be destined for replacement with bus service anyway.
HF 269, introduced by Rep. Jon Koznick (R-Lakeville, Minn.) — chair of the Transportation Finance and Policy Committee — seeks permission from the Federal Transit Administration to discontinue the service without repaying the $85 million in federal funds used to build the service. It would require the state transportation commissioner and Metropolitan Council — the Twin Cities-area governmental body that oversees Metro Transit, the Northstar operator — to submit a plan for that discontinuation within 90 days of receiving FTA permission.
Koznick, in a Sunday, Feb. 23, press release, called it “an over $320 million failed experiment in commuter transit. … it’s time to stop wasting $11 million annually on a project that simply doesn’t work to reduce congestion or move people.”
But today (Feb. 24), the Metropolitan Council and state Department of Transportation announced they’re studying replacing the 40-mile commuter rail line with bus service. Minnesota Public Radio reports the agencies said in a joint statement that a recent study “makes it clear we can provide more cost-effective transit service in the corridor currently being served by Northstar Commuter Rail. … We must be willing to be flexible and innovative to offer better service while saving dollars. We have jointly started the process to explore transitioning to bus service in this corridor.”
The council and state DOT say they’ll work with the federal government as well as BNSF Railway, contract operator of Northstar, as they explore the potential switch.
“In the coming months, we will have more information, including timeline information and projected future savings,” their statement said. “For Minnesotans who currently utilize this service, we are committed to working with you to ensure you have access to high-quality transportation in this corridor.”
Koznick — whose district is south of the Twin Cities, while the Northstar line runs to the northwest — previously sought to shut down the service in 2021. The state Senate proposed a similar bill in 2022.
He has also introduced a bill, HF749, that would require the service to be killed if it carries less than 450,000 people in any six-month period. In its best single ridership year, 2019, Northstar carried about 767,000 riders.
Following the pandemic, daily ridership fell from 2,455 daily riders in 2019 to 275 in 2022, prompting the study to consider service options. Ridership rebounded somewhat in 2023, to about 600 riders per day.
Northstar currently operates four weekday round trips on a 40-mile, seven-station route between Minneapolis and Big Lake, Minn. The operation was initially intended to serve St. Cloud, another 27 miles northwest of Big Lake, but was cut back because of a lack of funding.
— Updated at 8:25 p.m. CT with announcement of possible switch to bus service.
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