1. PROJECT UPDATE PUBLIC OPEN HOUSE #3 OCTOBER 17 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM Dakota County Northern Service Center

2. AA PROCESS 2 Project Scoping We are here 1 2 3 4

3. 1. PROJECT SCOPING: PURPOSE AND NEED PROJECT PURPOSE The purpose of the Robert Street Transitway is to provide the necessary transit infrastructure and service to meet the long-term regional mobility and local accessibility needs between downtown St. Paul and areas within Dakota County. PROJECT NEED  Forecasted growth in travel demand  Limited transit service and time-efficient transit options  Needs of people who depend on transit  Roadway congestion and shift toward multimodal investments  Regional objectives for growth 3

4. 1. PROJECT SCOPING: GOALS AND OBJECTIVES GOALS  Improve mobility and accessibility  Enhance the effectiveness of transit service within the corridor  Provide cost-effective and financially feasible transit solutions  Support and enhance existing communities and planned development  Support healthy communities and sound environmental practices 4

5. 2. PRELIMINARY SCREENING 5 WHAT WAS INCLUDED IN PRELIMINARY SCREENING?  Does the alignment meet the project purpose?  Does the alignment show ridership potential?  Does the alignment match a transitway mode’s recommended facility type, system length, and physical needs?

6. 2. PRELIMINARY SCREENING: ALTERNATIVES Preliminary screening considered alignment and mode alternatives generated by fall 2012 open houses, the Robert Street Steering Committee, and the 2008 feasibility study. Alternatives included:  33 unique alignment segments  7 mode alternatives

7. 2. PRELIMINARY SCREENING: RESULTS Alternatives advanced through preliminary screening:  Robert Street Arterial BRT  Robert Street Streetcar  TH 52 LRT/Dedicated Busway  TH 52 Highway BRT  Concord Arterial BRT  Concord Streetcar These alternatives:  Met the project purpose  Showed ridership potential  Fit a transitway mode A possible service extension to Rosemount was advanced for sensitivity analysis.

8. 3. CONCEPTUAL DEFINITION AND PRELIMINARY EVALUATION WHAT WAS INCLUDED IN THE CONCEPTUAL DEFINITION OF ALTERNATIVES?  Alignments  Service plans  Cross sections  Facilities  Conceptual station design 8

9. 3. PRELIMINARY EVALUATION WHAT WAS INCLUDED IN PRELIMINARY EVALUATION? 9 Assess alternative’s ability to: ■ Provide cost-effective and financially feasible transit solutions 1. Engineering Constraints Assess alternative’s ability to: ■ Improve mobility and accessibility ■ Support healthy communities and sound environmental practices 2. Ridership Potential Assess alternative’s ability to:  Enhance effectiveness of transit service within the corridor  Improve mobility and accessibility 3. Capital Improvement Needs Project Goal

10. 3. PRELIMINARY EVALUATION: RESULTS Alternatives advanced through preliminary evaluation: Robert Street Streetcar Robert Street Arterial BRT TH 52 Highway BRT These alternatives showed the best ability to satisfy project goals based on one or more factors including:  Physical impacts  Projected ridership  Cost-effectiveness A service extension to Rosemount was evaluated separately from preliminary evaluation. Further study of a traditional express bus service along TH 52 is recommended for analysis outside of this study.

11. 4. ADVANCED DEFINITION AND FINAL EVALUATION ADVANCED DEFINITION WILL INCLUDE:  Runningway alignment  Stations  Service plans  Traffic controls  Operating facilities design 11 We are here

12. 4. ADVANCED DEFINITION AND FINAL EVALUATION ADVANCED DEFINITION WILL PROVIDE INFORMATION TO EVALUATE: Cost estimates Economic development and land use Environmental and natural resources Environmental justice Mobility Traffic operations Travel demand 12 We are here

13. 4. ADVANCED DEFINITION AND FINAL EVALUATION INFORMED BY: Purpose and Need local Adopted goals, objectives, and evaluation measures Metropolitan Council Regional Transitway Guidelines regional Capital Investment Criteria – Section 10.8 FTA New Starts national Project Justification Criteria 13 We are here

14. NEXT STEPS TODAY WHAT’S NEXT TODAY? We invite you to:  Review materials  Ask questions  Sign-up for email list  Fill out comment cards  Provide feedback on preliminary alternatives 14

15. THANK YOU! WWW.ROBERTSTREETTRANSIT.COM