Editing Minneapolis–Saint Paul (section)

===Transportation===
{{See also|Transportation in Minnesota}}

====Roads and highways====

[[File:MendotaBridge8.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Mendota Bridge]] over the [[Minnesota River]] between [[Fort Snelling, Minnesota|Fort Snelling]] and [[Mendota, Minnesota|Mendota]]]]
In the 20th century, the Twin Cities area expanded outward significantly. Automobiles made it possible for suburbs to grow greatly. The area now has a number of freeways, and many [[traffic camera]]s and [[ramp meter]]s to monitor and manage [[traffic congestion]]. There is some use of HOV ([[high-occupancy vehicle]]) express lanes, which is becoming more common. To use an express lane, a driver must have a [[MnPASS]] transponder or at least one passenger. MnPASS rates are determined by the amount of traffic on the road and/or the time of day. During non-peak times, the MnPASS express lanes, except those on [[Interstate 394 (Minnesota)|Interstate 394]] (I-394) between [[Minnesota State Highway 100|Minnesota Highway 100]] (MN 100) and [[Interstate 94 in Minnesota|I-94]], are open to all traffic.

I-94 comes into the area from the east and heads northwest from Minneapolis. Two spur routes form the [[Interstate 494|I-494]]/[[Interstate 694|I-694]] loop, and I-394 continues west when I-94 turns north. [[Interstate 35 in Minnesota|I-35]] splits in [[Burnsville, Minnesota|Burnsville]] in the southern part of the region, bringing [[Interstate 35E (Minnesota)|I-35E]] into Saint Paul and [[Interstate 35W (Minnesota)|I-35W]] into Minneapolis. They rejoin to the north in [[Columbus, Minnesota|Columbus]] (just south of [[Forest Lake, Minnesota|Forest Lake]]) and continue to the highway's terminus in [[Duluth, Minnesota|Duluth]]. This is one of only two examples of an interstate highway splitting into branches and then rejoining; the other is in [[Dallas–Fort Worth]], where I-35 also splits into east and west branches.

On August 1, 2007, much of the [[I-35W Mississippi River bridge]] near downtown Minneapolis collapsed into the [[Mississippi River]] around 6:05pm [[Central Time Zone (North America)|CDT]].<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.twincities.com/allheadlines/ci_6518669 | title=35W bridge collapses over Mississippi River, cars in the water | newspaper=[[St. Paul Pioneer Press]] | date=2007-08-01 | access-date=2007-08-01}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://kstp.com/article/stories/S156329.shtml?cat=1 | title=35W bridge over Mississippi collapsed |location = St. Paul | publisher=[[KSTP-TV]] | date=2007-08-01 | access-date=2007-08-01 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016155630/http://kstp.com/article/stories/S156329.shtml?cat=1 | archive-date=October 16, 2015 | url-status=dead }}</ref> A [[St. Anthony Falls (35W) Bridge|replacement bridge]] opened on September 18, 2008.

; Interstates
{{Div col}}
* [[File:I-35 (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Interstate 35 in Minnesota|I-35]]
* [[File:I-35E (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Interstate 35E (Minnesota)|I-35E]]
* [[File:I-35W (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Interstate 35W (Minnesota)|I-35W]]
* [[File:I-94 (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Interstate 94 in Minnesota|I-94]]
* [[File:I-394 (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Interstate 394|I-394]]
* [[File:I-494 (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Interstate 494|I-494]]
* [[File:I-694 (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Interstate 694|I-694]]
{{Div col end}}

; U.S. Highways
{{Div col}}
* [[File:US 10.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[U.S. Route 10 in Minnesota|US 10]]
* [[File:US 12.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[U.S. Route 12 in Minnesota|US 12]]
* [[File:US 52.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[U.S. Route 52 in Minnesota|US 52]] (Lafayette Freeway)
* [[File:US 61 (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[U.S. Route 61 in Minnesota|US 61]] (Blues Highway)
* [[File:US 169 (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[U.S. Route 169 in Minnesota|US 169]] (Johnson Memorial Highway)
* [[File:US 212 (MN).svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[U.S. Route 212 in Minnesota|US 212]] (Minnesota Veterans Memorial Highway)
{{Div col end}}

; Major state highways
{{Div col}}
* [[File:MN-3.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 3|MN 3]]
* [[File:MN-5.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 5|MN 5]] 
* [[File:MN-7.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 7|MN 7]]
* [[File:MN-13.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 13|MN 13]]
* [[File:MN-36.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 36|MN 36]]
* [[File:MN-47.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 47|MN 47]]
* [[File:MN-51.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 51|MN 51]] (Snelling Avenue North)
* [[File:MN-55.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 55|MN 55]] (Olson Memorial Highway)
* [[File:MN-62.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 62 (east)|MN 62]] (Crosstown Highway)
* [[File:MN-65.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 65|MN 65]]
* [[File:MN-77.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 77|MN 77]] (Cedar Avenue)
* [[File:MN-100.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 100|MN 100]]
* [[File:MN-101.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 101|MN 101]]
* [[File:MN-120.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 120|MN 120]]
* [[File:MN-149.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 149|MN 149]]
* [[File:MN-252.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 252|MN 252]]
* [[File:MN-156.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 156|MN 156]]
* [[File:MN-280.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 280|MN 280]]
* [[File:MN-610.svg|x24px|alt=|link=]] [[Minnesota State Highway 610|MN 610]]
{{Div col end}}

====Air travel====
The main [[airport]] in the region is '''[[Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport]]''' (MSP), a major hub for [[Delta Air Lines]]. [[Endeavor Air]], a Delta subsidiary, is based there. MSP is also [[Sun Country Airlines]]' main hub and operating base. There are six smaller ([[relief airport|relief]]) airports in the area owned and operated by the [[Metropolitan Airports Commission]] (the same agency operates MSP). Some people commute by air to the Twin Cities from northern Minnesota.

Relief airports in the metropolitan area are:

{{Div col}}
* [[Airlake Airport]] (LVN) – [[Lakeville, Minnesota|Lakeville]]
* [[Anoka County-Blaine Airport]] (ANE) – [[Blaine, Minnesota|Blaine]]
* [[Crystal Airport (Minnesota)|Crystal Airport]] (MIC) – [[Crystal, Minnesota|Crystal]]
* [[Flying Cloud Airport]] (FCM) – [[Eden Prairie, Minnesota|Eden Prairie]]
* [[Lake Elmo Airport]] (21D) – [[Lake Elmo, Minnesota|Lake Elmo]]
* [[St. Paul Downtown Airport]] (STP) – [[Saint Paul, Minnesota|St. Paul]]
{{Div col end}}

====Public transit====
[[File:Hiawatha Line-bike rack-20061211.jpg|thumb|Bicycle rack on the [[Blue Line (Minnesota)|METRO Blue Line]] LRT]]
[[File:Metro Transit-Minneapolis-2005-06-04.jpg|thumb|[[Metro Transit (Minnesota)|Metro Transit]] storefront, [[Minneapolis, Minnesota|Minneapolis]]]]

[[Metro Transit (Minnesota)|Metro Transit]], by far the area's biggest bus service provider, owes its existence to the [[Twin City Rapid Transit|old streetcar]] lines in the area. Metro Transit provides about 95% of the [[public transit]] rides in the region, with over 900 buses, while some suburbs have other bus services. The [[University of Minnesota|University of Minnesota, Twin Cities]] operates a free bus system between its campuses. This system includes the Campus Connector [[bus rapid transit]] line, which travels between the Minneapolis and Saint Paul campuses by a dedicated bus line and throughout the two campuses on normal access roads. The [[Metro Blue Line (Minnesota)|METRO Blue Line]] LRT ([[light rail]]) began operations in June 2004, connecting downtown Minneapolis, [[Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport]] and the [[Mall of America]] in Bloomington. It was followed by the [[Metro Red Line (Minnesota)|METRO Red Line]] BRT (bus rapid transitway) in 2013 connecting the Mall of America with [[Lakeville, Minnesota|Lakeville]] along [[Cedar Avenue]] through the southern suburbs. The [[Metro Green Line (Minnesota)|METRO Green Line]] LRT connecting downtown Minneapolis, the University of Minnesota campus and downtown Saint Paul along [[University Avenue (Minneapolis–Saint Paul)|University Avenue]] opened in 2014.<ref>{{cite web|title=Metropolitan Council – Central Corridor transit FAQ |url=http://metrocouncil.org/transportation/ccorridor/ccfaq.htm |access-date=3 July 2011 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612083026/http://www.metrocouncil.org/transportation/ccorridor/ccfaq.htm |archive-date=12 June 2011 }}</ref> Metro Transit operates all three lines. The [[Northstar Line]] [[commuter rail]] line connecting Minneapolis with [[Big Lake, Minnesota|Big Lake]] opened in 2009.

The METRO system consists of six separate projects. There are two [[light rail]] lines: the Blue Line, which runs from [[Target Field]] in downtown [[Minneapolis]] past [[Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport]] to the [[Mall of America]]; and the Green Line, which runs from [[Target Field]] past the [[University of Minnesota]] to [[Saint Paul Union Depot|Union Depot]] in downtown [[Saint Paul, Minnesota|Saint Paul]]. The [[bus rapid transit|BRT]] Red Line serves as an extension of the Blue Line across the [[Minnesota River]], where it connects with southern suburbs at four different stations. The BRT Orange Line connects downtown Minneapolis with Burnsville along I-35W. The arterial BRT A and C lines serve as upgrades to existing local bus routes and connect with the Blue and Green lines at certain shared stations.

{{rint|minnesota|METRO}} '''METRO'''

* {{Color box|blue|border=darkgray}} '''[[Metro Blue Line (Minnesota)|Blue Line]]''' LRT: [[Target Field (Metro Transit station)|Target Field Station]] – [[Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport]] – [[Mall of America station|Mall of America]]
* {{Color box|green|border=darkgray}} '''[[Metro Green Line (Minnesota)|Green Line]]''' LRT: Target Field Station – [[University of Minnesota]] – [[Union Depot (St. Paul)|Union Depot]]
* {{Color box|orange|border=darkgray}} '''[[Metro Orange Line (Minnesota)|Orange Line]]''' BRT: Downtown Minneapolis – Burnsville Heart of the City
* {{Color box|red|border=darkgray}} '''[[Metro Red Line (Minnesota)|Red Line]]''' BRT: Mall of America – [[Apple Valley Transit Station]]
* {{Color box|grey|border=darkgray}} '''[[A Line (Minnesota)|A Line]]''' BRT: [[46th Street station (Metro Transit)|46th Street station]] – [[Rosedale Transit Center]]
* {{Color box|grey|border=darkgray}} '''[[C Line (Minnesota)|C Line]]''' BRT: Downtown Minneapolis – [[Brooklyn Center Transit Center]]
* {{Color box|grey|border=darkgray}} '''[[D Line (Minnesota)|D Line]]''' BRT: Mall of America – [[Brooklyn Center Transit Center]]

A variety of rail services are being pondered by state and local governments, including neighborhood streetcar systems, intercity light rail service, and [[commuter rail]] options to [[Commuter town|exurban]] regions. Minnesota is one of several Midwestern states considering [[high-speed rail]] service, using Chicago as a regional hub.<ref name="rail">[http://www.dot.state.mn.us/passengerrail/highspeed.html Midwest Regional Rail Initiative]. Retrieved June 24, 2008.</ref>

The Minneapolis–Saint Paul area has been criticized for inadequate public transportation.<ref name="traffic">[http://www.metrocouncil.org/Directions/transit/transit2005/congestionJun05.htm Metropolitan Council Release on Traffic Congestion]. Retrieved October 16, 2006. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120221224912/http://www.metrocouncil.org/Directions/transit/transit2005/congestionJun05.htm |date=February 21, 2012 }}</ref> Its public transportation system is less robust than those of many other cities its size. As the metro area has grown, the roads and highways have been updated and widened, but traffic volume is growing faster than the projects needed to widen them, and public transportation has not expanded commensurate with the population. Minneapolis–Saint Paul is ranked the fifth-worst for congestion growth of similar-sized U.S. metro areas.<ref name="traffic" />{{dead link|date=September 2011}} Additional lines and spurs are needed to upgrade public transportation in the Twin Cities.<ref>{{cite web|title=Metropolitan Council – Central Corridor transit FAQ |url=http://metrocouncil.org/transportation/ccorridor/ccfaq.htm |access-date=3 July 2011 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612083026/http://www.metrocouncil.org/transportation/ccorridor/ccfaq.htm |archive-date=June 12, 2011 }}</ref> Construction is underway for [[Southwest Corridor (Minneapolis)|Green Line extension]] connecting downtown Minneapolis to the southwest suburb of [[Eden Prairie, Minnesota|Eden Prairie]]. A northwest LRT (Blue Line extension) along [[Bottineau Boulevard]] is being planned from downtown Minneapolis to [[Brooklyn Park, Minnesota|Brooklyn Park]]. The [[Orange Line (Minnesota)|METRO Orange Line]] BRT will eventually be extended to Lakeville. The METRO Gold Line BRT is planned to connect downtown Saint Paul to the eastern suburbs within the next few years.