To enhance regional mobility, the METRO Gold Line, a bus rapid transit line opening in March 2025, will be extended to downtown Minneapolis in 2027.
The Gold Line will become the region’s sixth bus rapid transit line when it opens next year, providing frequent, all-day service between downtown Saint Paul and Woodbury. Gold Line buses will primarily operate in bus lanes generally along the Interstate 94 corridor, serving 16 stations in Saint Paul, Maplewood, Landfall, Oakdale and Woodbury.
In 2027, Gold Line service will be extended to downtown Minneapolis, allowing people to travel more efficiently across the metro.
The Gold Line Extension will bring new, enhanced stations to Interstate 94 and Snelling Avenue, where riders can connect to the METRO A Line and METRO B Line, and near U.S. Bank Stadium. In Minneapolis, the Gold Line will serve existing bus rapid transit stations on 7th and 8th streets and bring riders as far as the METRO Green Line Extension’s Royalston Avenue/Farmers Market Station.
“Extending the Gold Line will create a true crosstown route that allows people to travel efficiently between the East Metro and some of our region’s top destinations,” General Manager Lesley Kandaras said.
The Gold Line will be considered substantially complete later this year. The $505 million project is set to finish on time and under budget, with service scheduled to begin on March 22, 2025. Extending the Gold Line is estimated to cost up to $20 million, with money primarily going toward buses and station construction.
Service improvements planned across Gold Line corridor
When in service, the Gold Line Extension will replace Route 94, the express route operating between downtown Minneapolis and downtown Saint Paul and carrying around 800 riders each weekday.
The Gold Line will improve service by providing a one-seat ride and offering service every 10 minutes throughout the day, seven days a week.
Metro Transit's draft service improvement plan, Network Now, calls for midday service to be added to Route 94 prior to 2027.
Network Now also calls for new and redesigned routes to better connect communities to Gold Line stations when Gold Line service begins. A planned microtransit service, Metro micro, will improve Gold Line access by allowing residents to request shared rides in Woodbury.
Additionally, Metro Transit is one of many partners involved in MnDOT’s Rethinking I-94 project. Plans for the Gold Line Extension will be adapted as that planning effort continues and as community feedback is gathered.
2025 is a big year for METRO network expansion
The Gold Line is one of three bus rapid transit lines opening in 2025. The METRO B Line is scheduled to open in June 2025, improving service in the Route 21 corridor, and the METRO E Line is scheduled to open in December 2025, improving service in the Route 6 corridor.
Comments on the planned METRO G Line, which will improve service in the Rice Street and Robert Street corridors and connect with the Gold Line in downtown Saint Paul, are being accepted through Friday, Oct. 25.
When fully built out, the METRO network will provide communities across the region access to fast, frequent, all-day service. Extensions of the METRO Green Line and METRO Blue Line are advancing, and there will be 12 bus rapid transit lines in service when the METRO network is complete.
“The transportation investments we’re making in our METRO system are fundamentally transforming how people move and connect around our region,” Metropolitan Council Chair Charlie Zelle said. “Each new service builds on the ones that have come before it, making transit a more attractive and useful option for residents across the Twin Cities.”
View a map of the Gold Line Extension