Target Field (Metro Transit station)

Target Field
A view down upon the Northstar Commuter Rail platform at Target Field station.
Station statistics
Address	5th Street & 3rd Avenue North Minneapolis, MN 55401
Coordinates	44°59′0″N 93°16′38″W / 44.983333°N 93.27722°W / 44.983333; -93.27722Coordinates: 44°59′0″N 93°16′38″W / 44.983333°N 93.27722°W / 44.983333; -93.27722
Lines	Hiawatha Line 55   Northstar Line 888   Central Corridor (Under construction)   Southwest Corridor (Approved)   Bottineau Boulevard Transitway (Planned)   Red Rock Corridor (Planned)   Northern Lights Express (Planned)
Connections	At 5th Street Garage: 3, 14, 16, 20, 50, 94, 353, 355, 365, 375, 856[1]
Platforms	Island platform
Other information
Opened	November 14, 2009 (light rail) November 16, 2009 (commuter rail)[2]
Accessible
Owned by	Metro Transit
Fare zone	Downtown zone (Hiawatha)
Services
Preceding station   Metro Transit   Following station Terminus Hiawatha Line Route 55 Warehouse District / Hennepin Avenue toward Mall of America Northstar Line Route 888 Fridley toward Big Lake     Under Construction     Terminus Central Corridor Warehouse District / Hennepin Avenue toward Saint Paul Union Depot     Proposed     Terminus Southwest Corridor Royalston toward Mitchell Road Bottineau Boulevard Transitway Van White Blvd toward [[Template:S-line/MNMT right/Bottineau Boulevard Transitway Station|Template:S-line/MNMT right/Bottineau Boulevard Transitway]] Red Rock Corridor Northeast Minneapolis toward Hastings Northern Lights Express Coon Rapids Foley Boulevard toward Duluth

Target Field station (formally known during construction under the names of Minneapolis Intermodal Station & Downtown Minneapolis Ballpark Station) is a multimodal commuter train and light rail station in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Located in the North Loop area of Downtown Minneapolis, the name of the station reflects that of the new Minnesota Twins baseball stadium located next to the station, Target Field. Light rail service started November 14, 2009; commuter rail service started November 16, 2009. The light rail station platform runs northwest/southeast on the 5th Street North bridge over the commuter rail tracks, while the commuter train platform runs northeast/southwest below at ground level between two tracks. By the commuter platform, there is a third track on the northwest side that allows freight traffic to bypass the platform tracks. The Northstar commuter rail fares from this station range from $3.25 to $7.00 on weekdays and $2.50 to $5.25 on weekends, depending on destination.^[3]

Future plans

There are plans to incorporate the Red Rock Corridor, Central Corridor, Southwest Corridor, and Bottineau Boulevard train lines and Metro Transit and Minnesota Valley Transportation Authority Bus Routes into this station.

The station connects to Target Field, and trains are able to wait under the stadium. The Minnesota Twins pledged $2.6 million for its construction.^[4]

History

The first railroad tracks in Minneapolis on the West bank were placed in this location by the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad which later became the Great Northern Railway. The Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway and Great Northern Railway laid parallel East/West tracks in this location platted as Dakota Avenue/4th Avenue between 3rd Street North and 5th Street North. The Minneapolis and St. Louis Track was the Southern track and the Great Northern track was the Northern track. This grade separation was agreed in 1890 after much litigation.^[5]

The station is very near the site of two former Minneapolis railroad depots. The very first rail depot in downtown Minneapolis was located 2 blocks east along the same tracks.^[5] The Electric Short Line Railway (Luce Line) Depot was located at the Northwest corner of 7th St. North and 3rd Avenue North, currently a parking lot. It was shared with the Minneapolis, St. Paul, Rochester and Dubuque Electric Traction Company, (known as the Dan Patch Line and later the Minneapolis, Northfield and Southern Railway) as well as the Minneapolis, Anoka and Cuyuna Range Interurban railway.^[5] The site occupied by the station had been a parking lot for many years.

Additional photos

• 

  View of the commuter platform in front of the nearly-complete Target Field. The upper light-rail platforms are obscured by bridges.

• 

  Platforms for Hiawatha Line light rail under construction.

• 

  LRT platforms, June 2009

• 

  Northstar platforms, June 2009

References

1. ^ "Downtown Minneapolis Transit System Map". Metro Transit. December 2009. http://www.metrotransit.org/sysmap/dtMplsmap.htm. Retrieved 2010-02-15. ^{[dead link]}
2. ^ http://www.metrocouncil.org/news/2009/news_651.htm
3. ^ http://www.metrotransit.org/Northstar/riding.asp
4. ^ Paul Levy and Joy Powell, Finally, all aboard Northstar rail, Star Tribune, December 10, 2007.
5. ^ ^{a b c} Hofsommer, Don L. (2005). Minneapolis and the Age of Railways: And the Age of Railways. University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 0816645019. 

External links

• Metro Transit - Target Field Station
• Downtown Minneapolis Ballpark Station, Northstar Corridor Development Authority (NCDA)