The Daily Commute for Mendota Heights Riders Unaffected by Shutdown—For Now

Good news for Mendota Heights-area commuters: Riders of Metro Transit, the Hiawatha light rail line or even the Northstar commuter rail can expect service to continue uninterrupted despite the government shutdown—though not indefinitely.

Other contracted services including Metro Mobility that are operated by the Metropolitan Council are also expected to run without interruption.

"All transit service will continue operating as normal beyond the potential shutdown date,” said Metro Transit spokesman John Siqveland.

Construction on the Central Corridor in St. Paul can also continue for a period of time.

Why? The Met Council, which operates most transit systems in the metro, is a political subdivision, not a state agency, and can run independently to some degree with its own administration and reserve funds.

Nearly a fifth of funding for regional transit through the Met Council comes from the state general fund, according to Siqveland. By using reserves, the Met Council can continue to operate services for several weeks.

“The goal is that all transit, the transit network, will operate as-is for that entire period,” Siqveland said.

However, reserve funds will not last indefinitely without a state transportation budget resolution.

“It’s not known exactly how long (the funds will last) because we don’t know exactly what the different forces are going to be changing over the next few weeks,” Siqveland said.

A specific plan for what would happen if reserves are tapped has not yet been worked out, Siqveland added, and will be developed over the next few weeks if necessary.

A similar situation is described by Minnesota Valley Transit Authority (MVTA) Customer Service Manager Robin Selvig. MVTA buses serve Eagan, Apple Valley, Rosemount, Burnsville and Savage, and contract for a route that stops in Lakeville.

The commuter routes to the south metro should continue, at least initially, in the event of a shutdown. 

MVTA, which provides 10,000 rides daily, has enough fund balance to continue operating for about 60 days should the state government shutdown occur, Selvig said.

One caveat: Two MVTA routes are provided through a contract with the Met Council and Metro Transit—the 477V route between Lakeville's Cedar Park-and-Ride and the Apple Valley Transit Station only, and the 475 route from Eagan's Cedar Grove station to downtown Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota.

If Metro Transit could not operate, these routes could also be affected. The 477V route would, however, still pick up at the Apple Valley transit station, Selvig said.

Transit authorities are also still keenly watching for the outcome of budget negotiations when a shutdown resolution is reached.

In the transportation-funding package passed by the Legislature and vetoed by Gov. Mark Dayton, state general fund support of transit is reduced by about $110 million, or 84 percent, according to a statement by Met Council Chairwoman Susan Haigh. The Met Council could deplete other funds to backfill that loss to some degree, according to a report by the Minnesota Budget Project.

By contrast, ridership was reported to be 19.5 million in the first quarter of 2011, up two percent. The rise in gas prices experienced over the past year has likely contributed to increased use of transit.

What size of cuts will emerge from budget negotiations is unknown, but fare increases and service reductions would occur in response to any major reductions.

A series of public hearings on the proposed transit cuts is scheduled to begin July 6.