Minnesota’s Urban Partnership Agreement

1. Transit Improvements on I-35W and Highway 77 UPA funding will be used to provide additional transit service on the I-35W and Highway 77 corridors from Minneapolis to the southern suburbs. Accelerate bus rapid transit— The UPA project will establish a shared BRT/HOT lane on I-35W from Minneapolis to Burnsville, and will accelerate portions of the Cedar Avenue Transitway by constructing online stations and utilizing existing bus shoulders on Highway 77/Cedar Avenue. Expand express bus and park-and-ride facilities on I-35W and Highway 77 — New or expanded park and ride facilities on I-35W in both the north and south suburbs, and on Hwy 77. Additional bus service will then be provided to these park and rides. Provide transit advantages at Highway 77 and Highway 62 interchange— Improve transit access from northbound Highway 77 to westbound Highway 62 bus shoulder. This improvement connects the Highway 77 BRT to I-35W. Provide advanced traveler information for park-and-ride facilities— Real time congestion conditions, parking availability and bus arrival information will be provided. Install transit driver guidance system— A lane guidance system developed by the University of Minnesota that allows buses to more safely navigate on bus-only shoulders or narrow lanes will be utilized. Minnesota’s Urban Partnership Agreement The Urban Partnership Agreement Minnesota has been awarded $133.3 million through the US Department of Transportation’s Urban Partnership Agreement (UPA) program to reduce traffic congestion in the Twin Cities. Minnesota is required to provide a local match of $55.2 million. Money will be used to tackle congestion on I-35W primarily between downtown Minneapolis and the southern suburbs. Additional transit service and park and rides will also be developed on I-35W in the northern suburbs and on Highway 77. A coalition led by the Metropolitan Council and the Minnesota Department of Transportation applied for the funding in April 2007. Minnesota is one of five states selected by the US DOT to receive UPA funding. Minnesota intends to construct transit improvements, install an additional HOT lane, implement the use of dynamic shoulders, expand traffic management systems and promote telecommuting. UPA Timeline The UPA agreement with the US DOT requires that the project be operational by September 30, 2009, with the exception of the Downtown Minneapolis Transit Lanes, which have a deadline of December 31, 2009, and the HOT lane in the area of the Crosstown, which will be completed in fall 2010. Legislative approval for tolling on I-35W is required before the UPA federal funds are released to Minnesota. Extensive planning, design and construction needs to be done in a short timeframe to make the system operational by the 2009 deadline. • The Downtown Minneapolis transit lanes require two construction seasons to complete both Marquette Avenue and 2nd Avenue. The first construction season (2008) needs to be completed before the Republican National Convention in September 2008. Delays in the project start time would increase the cost of the project and require both avenues to be closed simultaneously. • Minnesota needs to begin work on right-of-way acquisition and design for park-and-ride lots and Cedar Avenue stations to meet the September 30, 2009 deadline. • The priced dynamic shoulder lanes and the HOT lane technology require two construction seasons to complete.

2. Minnesota’s Urban Partnership Agreement Tolling/Congestion Pricing on I-35W The I-394 MnPASS lanes, opened in May 2005, have developed technology for congestion pricing that has been accepted by the general public. The UPA project will expand MnPASS to the I-35W corridor. Convert I-35W HOV lanes to MnPASS HOT lanes • Convert the existing HOV lanes to I-35W MnPASS HOT lanes from Burnsville Parkway to I-494. (red line) • Upon reconstruction of the Crosstown Project, open a new I-35W MnPASS HOT lane from I-494 to 46th Street. (blue line) Implement a system of Priced Dynamic Shoulder Lanes • From 46th Street to downtown Minneapolis, replace current bus-only shoulders with priced dynamic shoulder lanes, which will allow buses to travel at free-flow freeway speeds instead of the current 35 mph limit on bus-only shoulders. The priced dynamic shoulder lanes will be used during peak periods and will operate as shared BRT/HOT lanes. (green line) Downtown Minneapolis Transit Lanes The UPA will expand the single bus lanes to two bus lanes on both Marquette and 2nd Avenues. This will more than triple bus throughput and reduce bus travel time through the 16-block downtown area by 10 minutes. (purple circle) Technology for Arterial Traffic Management Cameras and instrumentation on arterial roadways connecting to the I-35W and Highway 77 corridors will improve traffic flow and provide traveler information for motorists. Transit signal priority on arterial roadways connecting to the I-35W and Highway 77 corridors will provide an advantage for transit and help maintain transit schedules. Telecommuting The goal of the UPA telecommuting strategy is to recruit partners (local employers) and increase the number of telecommuting workers by 500 individuals. September 12, 2007