Minnesota Valley Transit Authority: Difference between revisions
(Undo revision 535157 by UpDownAcross38 (talk)) Tag: Undo |
|||
Line 635: | Line 635: | ||
| | | | ||
|19 [[Freedman Seating Company|Freedman]] | |19 [[Freedman Seating Company|Freedman]] | ||
| align="left"| | |||
|- align="center" | |||
|[[Minnesota Valley Transit Authority 4689-4698|4689-4698]] | |||
| | |||
|2006 | |||
|[[Motor Coach Industries|MCI]] | |||
|[[Motor Coach Industries D4500|D4500]] | |||
| | |||
| | |||
|57 | |||
| align="left"| | | align="left"| | ||
|- align="center" | |- align="center" |
Revision as of 04:22, 2 February 2021
| |
Areas Served | Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Rosemount, Savage, Prior Lake and Shakopee, Minnesota |
Founded | 1990 |
Fleet Size | 169 |
Number Of Routes | 32 |
2019 Ridership | 2.7 million [1] |
Minnesota Valley Transit Authority (MVTA) Is the transit provider for the communities of; Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, and Rosemount in Dakota County, Savage, Prior Lake and Shakopee in Scott County, Minnesota.
Overview
MVTA was formed in 1990 when the communities of Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Rosemount, and Savage, Minnesota opted-out of Metro Transit service under a provision of the MN State Legislature. This provision allowed suburban communities to opt-out of receiving Metro Transit service and collect property taxes directly to operate their own service. In 2001 funding for transit shifted from property taxes to the motor vehicle sales tax, which the MVTA currently receives it's funding from.
On January 1, 2015, transit in Prior Lake and Shakopee (operating under the BlueXpress brand) were merged into the MVTA.
MVTA currently operates 32 fixed and flex routes in the seven communities it serves. These routes are primarily express routes which operate from 10 park-n-rides to the downtowns of St. Paul and Minneapolis, MN. Local service is also provided in each community. Bus maintenance and operations are contracted to Schmitty and Sons.
Bus Rapid Transit
The MVTA began operating the Cedar Ave. BRT line in 2013. This line serves the Cedar Ave and Highway 77 corridor. This was the first Bus Rapid Transit or BRT line with station to station service to be operated in the Twin Cities region.
In December of 2020 operation of the Red Line was transferred from the MVTA to Metro Transit.
Naming
During the planning phase the line was referred to as the Cedar Ave line or Cedar avenue Transitway. Before opening however the line was branded as the Red Line. This was done to conform to the Metropolitan Council's regional transitway network naming system, known as Metro.
Stations
The line currently operates with five stations or stops. These are: Mall of America Transit Center; Cedar Grove Transit Station; 140th Street Station; 147th Street Station; and Apple Valley Transit Station.
Additional stations will be added to the line as funds become available for expansion. Future plans call for the line to be extended south towards Lakeville, MN.
Vehicles
The MVTA purchased 7 Nova Bus LFX 40' units to operate on the line.[2] these vehicles were used specifically for the BRT service and featured a unique livery and the Metro system styling to set them apart from the regular fixed-route service fleet. The Novas were operated daily on the Red Line service from opening day until December 2020 when operations were assumed by Metro Transit.
Facilities
Headquarters
MVTA management and customer service is based out of the Burnsville Transit Station located at Highway 13 and Nicollet Avenue in Burnsville, MN.
Operations Faciliites
- Burnsville Bus Garage
- Address: 11550 Rupp Dr. Burnville, MN[3]
- Eagan Bus Garage
- Address: 3600 Blackhawk Road, Eagan, MN
Passenger Facilities
The MVTA system has a number of transit stations and park-n-ride lots, all of these facilities are served by at least one express route with service to a major destination.
Fares
MVTA is part of the regional transit fare system. See the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area Transit Systems Fare Description for more information.
Fleet
Active roster
On Order
Fleet number(s) | Thumbnail | Year | Manufacturer | Model | Engine | Transmission | Passenger Seats | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
TBD (11 buses) |
2020 | Gillig | TBD | TBD | TBD |
|
Retired Roster
Historically the MVTA bus fleet has consisted largely of second-hand units, many of which were transferred from Metro Transit
Notes:
- The MVTA also operated a large number of vans used for vanpool service
- Additional units, most of which were cutaways, were also part of the fleet
Routes
A current listing of MVTA operated routes is available in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area Transit Systems Overview
External Links
References
- ↑ [1]MVTA 2019 Annual Report (PDF)
- ↑ Nova Bus: New Partnership Betwen MVTA and Nova Bus Retrieved on May 14th, 2012
- ↑ [2]Minnesota Valley Transit Authority: MVTA Board
- ↑ MVTA Board Meeting Packet, March 2012 Retrieved March 22, 2012
- ↑ Metropolitan Council: Business Item 2017-66 Authorize Execution of Contract Options with Gillig LLC
- ↑ Metropolitan Council: Business Item 2017-170 Authorize Execution of Contract Options with Gillig LLC
- ↑ Metropolitan Council: Business Item 2019-160 Authorize Execution of Contract Options with Gillig LLC Utilizing the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Gillig Bus Contract – 11 buses