Metro D Line (Minnesota)

Metro D Line
Company type	Bus rapid transit route
Industry	Public transportation
Founded	December 3, 2022
Headquarters	Minneapolis-Saint Paul, United States
Area served	Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area
Key people	Metropolitan Council (planning authority), Metro Transit (operator)
Products	Bus rapid transit service
Website	www.metrotransit.org/d-line

The Metro D Line operates as a bus rapid transit route within the Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Minnesota area, primarily traversing Fremont and Chicago Avenues. Its path extends from Brooklyn Center through Minneapolis, Minnesota and continues to the Mall of America located in Bloomington, Minnesota.^[1] Designed to provide "train-like amenities," the line features upgraded stations, off-board fare collection, contemporary buses, reduced stop frequency, and increased service intervals.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name It serves largely as a successor to Route 5, which holds the distinction of being Minnesota's busiest bus line.

In 2013, Metro Transit identified segments of Route 5 for potential BRT enhancements. Following the 2016 launch of the Metro A Line, priorities shifted after Minneapolis decided to reroute the Bottineau LRT away from north Minneapolis. This change redirected focus toward the Penn Avenue and Emerson-Fremont corridors. The Penn Avenue segment evolved into the Metro C Line, while the Emerson-Fremont and Chicago Avenue routes were merged to create the D Line, covering the entire length of Route 5. Project development commenced in 2017; funding was secured in 2020, construction began in 2021, and service officially started on December 3, 2022.

Background

The Metropolitan Council, serving as the metropolitan planning authority for the Twin Cities region, completed a 2030 Transit Master Study in 2008 that identified arterial bus corridors suitable for bus rapid transit (BRT) implementation. This study focused on corridors with significant ridership potential but limited opportunities for dedicated transit lanes. The Council’s objective was to double transit usage by 2030, positioning arterial BRT as a central strategy. Between 2011 and 2012, Metro Transit analyzed eleven corridors accounting for approximately 90,000 weekday riders—almost half of all urban route passengers—in the Arterial Transitway Corridors Study. These corridors were evaluated based on cost-effectiveness, ridership forecasts, and travel time improvements, with initial BRT lines expected to launch by 2014. The A Line was chosen first in 2012 and began operations in 2016.

The Chicago Avenue corridor was included among the original eleven but initially excluded the northern portion of Route 5. An addendum later incorporated both Penn Avenue and Chicago-Fremont corridors by combining segments of Route 5. Concurrently, the Bottineau LRT project shifted its alignment from Penn Avenue to Olson Memorial Highway due to right-of-way challenges. This prompted Minneapolis to prioritize two BRT projects running through north Minneapolis toward the Brooklyn Center Transit Center. The Penn Avenue corridor became known as the C Line, developed after postponing the B Line to allow further examination of the Riverview Corridor. The C Line commenced service in 2019.

Planning for the D Line began in 2017 with construction initially slated for 2020 pending financial backing. Later that year, it was reclassified as an "Increased Revenue Scenario," which delayed funding until secured. Despite this setback, Minneapolis passed a resolution endorsing the project. In 2018, Governor Mark Dayton proposed allocating $50 million toward the D Line; Governor Walz and regional officials continued to support it in 2019 although funding did not appear in that year’s state budget.

In October 2020, full funding was approved by the Minnesota Legislature with a projected opening in late 2022. The Metropolitan Council authorized a $26 million construction contract in February 2021. Groundbreaking took place on April 5, 2021, at Chicago and Franklin Avenues. By November 2022, activities included transit signal priority testing and operator training. The D Line officially launched on December 3, 2022, coinciding with a quarterly update to Metro Transit service schedules.

Service

The D Line operates every 10 to 15 minutes daily from 4:00 AM until 1:30 AM, effectively replacing most of Route 5's former around-the-clock service. Route 5 continues to run at a reduced frequency of 30 to 60 minutes between 47th Avenue and 56th Street, preserving stops at all current locations since approximately 75% of passengers board within a block of a D Line station. Despite driver shortages causing suspensions on other routes, Route 5 will remain active for several years to accommodate riders with mobility challenges and to observe changes in ridership patterns. However, service branches to 26th Avenue North and schoolday trips to 44th and Penn Avenue have been discontinued.

With the introduction of the D Line, Routes 721 and 724 no longer extend beyond Brooklyn Center Transit Center into downtown Minneapolis, as time savings compared to the D Line are minimal. Routes 39 and 133, which had been suspended, have been officially discontinued since the D Line offers comparable travel times. A Title VI service equity assessment revealed that most local residents will benefit from enhanced transit service, with BIPOC communities experiencing greater improvements than white populations.

Route

The D Line travels northbound from Mall of America to downtown Minneapolis via American Boulevard, Portland Avenue, and Chicago Avenue. In the downtown area, it uses one-way pairs on 7th and 8th Streets before continuing along 7th Street toward Plymouth Avenue in North Minneapolis. From there, the route proceeds on one-way pairs of Fremont and Emerson Avenues, reconnects on Lowry Avenue, and follows Fremont Avenue. At 44th Avenue, it turns westward to merge with the C Line route heading to Brooklyn Center Transit Center via Brooklyn Boulevard.

A planned station at East 38th Street and Chicago Avenue—the location of George Floyd’s death now known as George Floyd Square—was postponed despite full funding being secured. Metro Transit intends to collaborate with community members and city officials for the future design and construction of this station.

The D Line largely supplants Metro Transit's Route 5, which averaged approximately 19,500 weekday riders in 2017. At peak times, Route 5 required a fleet of 23 buses operating over 120 daily trips in both northbound and southbound directions.

Infrastructure

Although primarily operating alongside regular traffic, the D Line incorporates dedicated bus-only lanes in select areas. Notably, northbound buses through downtown Minneapolis utilize bus lanes on 7th Street that operate around the clock and were established in 2021. Additionally, a bus-only lane has been in place since 2019 on Chicago Avenue just north of Lake Street.

Transit signal priority was planned for 31 intersections along the corridor—19 northbound and 12 southbound—with deployment beginning in 2018. Following the D Line’s implementation, more than 50 intersections now feature transit signal priority, mainly positioned along Emerson Avenue, Fremont Avenue, or Chicago Avenue. These signals extend green phases or shorten red lights but do not override standard traffic signals.

Stations are equipped with modular shelters offering heating and lighting, real-time transit updates, emergency communication devices, and security cameras. Fare payment occurs offboard via Go-to card readers or ticket vending machines located at stations. The D Line is projected to reduce travel times by up to 25% compared to the previous Route 5 service.