Route Modification Study Phase II – White Bear Avenue and Bruce Vento Regional Trail Corridor Comparison
Figure 1: Bruce Vento Regional Trail and White Bear Ave corridors
Over the past several months, Purple Line staff have evaluated several aspects of the White Bear Ave and Bruce Vento Regional Trail corridors to inform the selection of a revised locally preferred alternative.
The Bruce Vento Regional Trail Corridor is part of the 2017 Purple Line (formerly Rush Line) locally preferred alternative that follows the Ramsey County rail right-of-way from Maryland Avenue to Beam Avenue/Maplewood Mall. The White Bear Ave Corridor was developed in April 2023 following a Ramsey County letter, Purple Line staff recommendation, and concurrence from the Corridor Management Committee (CMC) to study the feasibility of Purple Line operating in dedicated lanes on a reconfigured Maryland, White Bear, and Beam avenues. See the section below on the Route Modification Study Phase II White Bear Ave corridor design concept development.
Bruce Vento Regional Trail Corridor
Defined as the Ramsey County rail right-of-way and Beam Avenue from Maryland Avenue to the Maplewood Mall Transit Center. The Purple Line would co-locate in the corridor with the Bruce Vento Regional Trail.
9.5 miles | 17 stations | 15 minute frequency
3,800 projected riders per weekday
$370 million estimated cost
Community Considerations
- Fewer impacts to future traffic operations
- Fewer property impacts and quicker construction
- Shorter transit travel times from end to end
- Eligible for federal funding
- Fewer destinations within a 10-minute walk or roll of stations
- Less transit-supportive development
- Change of trail character that include some pedestrian improvements at trail crossings and roadway intersections
White Bear Ave Corridor
Defined as Maryland, White Bear, and Beam avenues between Johnson Parkway and the Maplewood Mall Transit Center or County Road D.
11 miles | 24 stations | 15 minute frequency
3,900-4,900 projected riders per weekday
$420-450 million estimated cost
Community Considerations
- More destinations within a 10-minute walk or roll of stations
- More transit-supportive development
- Roadway and pedestrian infrastructure improvements with roadway reconstruction
- Eligible for federal funding
- More impacts to future traffic operations
- More property impacts and slower construction
- Longer transit travel times from end to end
- Roadway and pedestrian infrastructure improvements with full roadway reconstruction
Route Modification Study Phase II – White Bear Avenue Corridor
White Bear and Maryland Avenue Conceptual Layout
Route Modification Study Phase II (RMS Phase II) started in April 2023, in response to a Ramsey County letter to the City of Maplewood. The CMC, at their April 2023 meeting, concurred with the project staff recommendation to study the feasibility of Purple Line operating in dedicated lanes on a reconfigured Maryland, White Bear and Beam avenues instead of collocating Purple Line with the Bruce Vento Regional Trail Corridor, north of Maryland Avenue. More information on the decision to begin RMS Phase II can be found in the presentation slides from the April 2023 CMC meeting.
During July and August 2023, project staff proposed twelve Purple Line BRT station locations generally replacing the Route 54 bus stops along the White Bear Avenue corridor to the community. Based on technical evaluation and public input, the CMC concurred with the staff recommendation to advance the station areas for future evaluation and community engagement in September 2023. Since then, project staff have continued to refine the station locations for the White Bear Avenue route option based on community feedback and design considerations.
One of these refinements was presented by staff to CMC in January 2024 where CMC concurred with project staff’s recommendation to move a station from Larpenteur Avenue to Idaho Avenue to better serve current and planned residential and commercial developments in the area. Another refinement moves a station from Beam and White Bear avenues to Radatz Ave. This change better supports transit and traffic operations at Beam and White Bear. The number of stations and station platform locations will be studied throughout this route modification study.
White Bear and Maryland Avenue Conceptual Layout
Based on community and stakeholder feedback, project staff have developed several conceptual roadway and transit design options for the White Bear Avenue corridor that were presented to the CMC in October 2023. Staff are currently evaluating these options and are soliciting feedback to understand their community benefits and impacts. All design options have four lanes, not counting turn lanes at intersections: two lanes for general traffic and either two lanes for transit or one lane for transit combined with a continuous left-turn lane.
Beside transit improvements, all of the options below will also include features to improve travel for all users such as more visible crosswalks and filling in gaps of sidewalk to improve the pedestrian experience and medians and dedicated turn lanes to improve vehicle and pedestrian safety.
Design Options on Maryland and White Bear, south of Larpenteur
The following design options are under consideration for Maryland Avenue and White Bear Avenue, south of Larpenteur Avenue.
Figure 2: 3-lane roadway with 1 Local Access and Transit Lane
A 3-lane roadway for mixed traffic with a semi-exclusive bus lane in one direction. Buses travel in mixed traffic and stop in-lane in the other direction. the bus lane permits right-turns and driveway access by all vehicles.
Figure 3: 2-Lane roadway with 2 Local Access and Transit Lanes
A 2-Lane roadway for mixed traffic and 2 semi-exclusive bus lanes on the side in both directions. The bus lands permit right-turns and driveway access by all vehicles.
Figure 4: 2-Lane roadway with Center-Running Transit Lanes
A 2-Lane roadway for mixed traffic and 2 exclusive bus-only lanes in the center of both directions. Bus-only lanes and a center median prevent left-turns mid-block and at unsignalized intersections. Buses have fewer conflicts with mixed traffic.
This option was added to the concept design evaluation following input from community leaders. Project staff recommended the study of a narrowed center-running option in Saint Paul and the CMC concurred on this recommendation in April 2024.
Design Options on White Bear, north of Larpenteur
The following design options are under consideration for White Bear Avenue, north of Larpenteur Avenue.
Figure 5: 2-Lane Roadway with 2 Local access and Transit Lanes and a median
A 2-lane roadway for mixed traffic and 2 semi exclusive bus lanes on the side in both directions. Bus lanes permit right-turns and driveway access by all vehicles. A center median prevents mid-block left turns.
Figure 6: 2-Lane Roadway with Center-Running Transit Lanes
A 2-Lane roadway for mixed traffic and 2 exclusive bus-only lanes in the center of both directions. Bus-only lanes and a center median prevent left-turn mid-block and at unsignalized intersections. Buses have fewer conflicts with mixed traffic.
Figure 7: 2-Lane Roadway with Dedicated Center-Running Transit Lane
A 2-lane roadway for mixed traffic and 2 exclusive bus-only lanes in the center in both directions. Bus-only lanes are between two medians, separating buses from mixed traffic. The medians prevent left turns mid-block and at unsignalized intersections. The dedicated transit lanes improve bus speed and reliability.
More information regarding the design options under consideration can be found in the presentation slides from the October 2023, the January 2024, and April 2024 CMC meetings.
Route Modification Study Phase I – Northern Endpoint
In response to a March 2022 White Bear Lake City Council Resolution, the Purple Line BRT project, with concurrence from the Purple Line Corridor Management Committee (CMC), suspended design of the Locally Preferred Alternative to downtown White Bear Lake in June 2022 to begin a Route Modification Study Phase I (RMS Phase I) to identify a new endpoint. More information on the decision to begin RMS Phase I can be found in the presentation slides from the April 2022 CMC meeting and steps for the study included:
Studying route options to three alternative endpoints (see Figure 1 below).
Decision making throughout the study was guided by the Route Modification Study Working Group, comprised of technical staff from:
- Corridor Municipalities: St. Paul, Maplewood, Vadnais Heights, White Bear Lake.
- Metro Transit Departments: Service Development, Engineering & Facilities, Bus Operations.
- Ramsey County.
Project staff then conducted technical evaluation of the most promising route options. The evaluation initially focused on:
- Consistency with the Purpose and Need.
- Evaluation criteria tied to the six project goals identified in the Environmental Assessment (2021).
Each of the three endpoints and their most promising route options performed well in the technical evaluation.
Identifying a single end point and route option came down to project eligibility for federal funding.
Figure 8: Northern endpoints evaluated during RMS Phase I
During the September 2022 CMC meeting, project staff shared the challenges of maintaining project eligibility for federal funding. Cost inflation and changes in travel patterns since 2019 have created new obstacles in meeting eligibility requirements. Throughout the remainder of 2022 and into 2023, project staff evaluated scope changes to lower capital costs, service plan changes to lower operating costs, transit network changes to increase ridership, and other changes to improve project viability.
After review of criteria such as cost, ridership and other factors for each end point, end point 2 – ending at the Maplewood Transit Center - was the only end point that qualified for federal funding to advance for further design and planning. More information on federal funding eligibility be found in the presentation slides from the September 2022 CMC meetings.