A Sneak Peek at MetroLink’s Cross County Line on August 22
Rail advocacy group Citizens for Modern Transit are offering a unique opportunity — a chance to ride the new Cross County extension of the MetroLink system before the opening to the general public:
Metro is on the brink of opening the next major extension of MetroLink for the St. Louis Region. It is an exciting time especially for members of CMT/WTS/COMTO – here is your chance to have a Sneak Peek Ride of the new alignment before it opens to the general public. Seating is limited so please reserve your spot early.
You will need to arrive at the Shrewsbury-Lansdowne I-44 Park-Ride Lot on Lansdowne at River Des Peres between 5 and 6:30 p.m. Rides will run on the new alignment between 5 and 7 p.m. Make history with Metro and CMT . . . get on board today!
I’ve already signed up for the August 22 event with a cost of only $5 for CMT members ($10 for non-members). To register click here.
This gives us a clue about the official public opening of MetroLink — sometime after August 22nd. I’m guessing it will be sometime the following week or perhaps just a few days later. It has been many years and many hundreds of millions in the making but I’m glad we are finally at this point. Our region is about to get a renewed interest in rail transit.
– Steve
Hmmmm, perhaps we should try out the new mass transit before its dirty, and full of poor middle and underclass proles.
Us Claytonites prefer isolation from the poorer people.
Steve, are we served caviar on this trip?
I expect at least foise gras for my 10 dollars.
Has anyone uploaded the images for proposed TODs around the Shrewsbury Metro station?
I’d like to figure out where to go buy some dirt to hold for investment.
I figure, if I buy the dirt around the Metro stop that TOD advocates want developed, then they’ll have to pay me big money later to buy my property.
Plus, If I buy now, I can buy low from all of those scared SW city types who are convinced Metro will bring a bad element to their corner of the city.
Then when developers come calling, I can sell high or hold up the entire project until they meet my price. And if I want, I can just keep raising the price!
If I buy a few key parcels, I can really cash in. Hello early retirement!
Especially now since there’s so much disdain for the use of eminent domain to acquire private property for private redevelopment. Thanks, Republicans and misguided liberals! Tee hee hee…
This sounds like a golden opportunity. Little old ladies: better watch out. You’re about to be played right into my plans!
Let me get this straight – you can pay $10 to ride on the 22nd, or $1 to ride it a week later? Ummmm…..I think I’ll wait.
[REPLY You’ll be waiting a long time for that $1 ticket! Current rates are $1.75 for one-way, $2 for a two-hour pass, and $4.25 for a one day pass. After 8/28/2006 the new rates go into effect: $2/$2.25/$4.50 respectively. – SLP]
For all the date slippages and budget overages, they should let everyone in town ride the thing free for a week to make amends.
As to a start up date:
They say a go date for the new bus and rail lines would be announced two months ago, but we’ve yet to hear anything. I suppose they’re justifably shaky about announcing deadlines, given their history with meeting them.
From Oakland’s shared link, they also said that new rail lines would open months later. As such, I’ll settle for a two-months late announcement, when paired with a two-months earlier than expected opening.
And if anyone gripes that August 2006 can’t begin to be desribed as an “early” opening, they’re likely forgetting how far behind the project was when Metro took over from the Collaborative in August 2004. Since taking over a project only midway or less through its construction, Metro has taken less time to complete what could have taken until 2007 to open. First hired in 2000, it took the Collaborative four years (2000-2004) to complete less than half of a project that Metro would then take only two more years (2004-2006), or half as much time, to actually finish.
Despite the facts, the media and public like blaming Metro. Well, fortunately, just as the public likes to follow spin over facts, we also have short memory spans. So then, it won’t be but next year, when Cross County trains will have been running for months and Highway 40 construction begins, that the public will get on another bandwagon and complain about another equally popular target, MODOT.