Target Field
Northstar Commuter Rail trains at Target Field station in 2009.
General information
Location5th Street & 3rd Avenue North
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Coordinates44°59′00″N 93°16′38″W / 44.98333°N 93.27722°W / 44.98333; -93.27722
Owned byMetro Transit
Line(s)BNSF Wayzata Subdivision (Northstar)
Platforms
Tracks
  • 2 (light rail)
  • 3 (Northstar, including bypass track)
Connections
Construction
Structure typeElevated (light rail)
At-grade (Northstar)
AccessibleYes
Other information
Fare zoneDowntown (light rail)
History
OpenedNovember 14, 2009 (2009-11-14)[2]
Rebuilt2014[3]
Previous namesDowntown Minneapolis/Ballpark (pre-opening)
Services
Preceding station Metro Following station
Terminus Blue Line Warehouse District/Hennepin Avenue
toward Mall of America
Green Line Warehouse District/Hennepin Avenue
toward Saint Paul Union Depot
Preceding station Metro Transit Following station
Fridley
towards Big Lake
 Northstar Line Terminus
Proposed and future service
Preceding station Metro Following station
Future service
Royalston Avenue/Farmers Market
toward SouthWest Station
 Southwest LRT through to Green Line
Proposed
Plymouth Avenue
toward Oak Grove Parkway
 Bottineau LRT through to Blue Line
Preceding station Amtrak Following station
Coon Rapids–Foley Boulevard
toward Duluth
 Northern Lights Express Terminus
Location

Target Field station (formerly known during construction under the names of Minneapolis Intermodal Station, Downtown Minneapolis/Ballpark Station, and The Interchange) is a multimodal commuter train and light rail station in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Located in the North Loop area of Downtown Minneapolis, the station is named for Target Field, the Minnesota Twins baseball stadium. METRO Blue Line light rail service started on November 14, 2009; Northstar Line commuter rail service started November 16, 2009; METRO Green Line light rail service started on June 14, 2014.

Layout

A down on the Northstar Line platform.

The station adjoins Target Field, and commuter rail trains can wait beside the stadium. The station has an island platform serving commuter rail and two sets of light rail island platforms. The original, Platform 1, opened in 2009 with the extension, Platform 2, opened in 2014.

The lower level Northstar platform runs northeast–southwest at ground level between two tracks. The original light rail platform runs perpendicular over the commuter rail tracks, parallel to the 5th Street North bridge. Platform 2 was built northwest of the Platform 1, approximately 100 feet (30 m) apart. Near the commuter platform is a third track on the northwest side, allowing freight traffic to bypass the platform tracks.

History

First pair of side platforms for light rail under construction.

The first railroad tracks in Minneapolis on the west bank of the Mississippi 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 upon in 1890 after much litigation.[4] The rail bed was lowered to form what is known as "The Cut" below the street grade today.[5]

The station is near the sites of other former Minneapolis railroad depots. The first rail depot in downtown Minneapolis, for the St. Paul and Pacific, was located east near the present-day Fourth Street along the same tracks.[4] The Minneapolis and St. Louis railway freight and passenger depots were located at the East side of Washington Avenue, also east of the present Target Field station.[6] The Electric Short Line Railway (Luce Line) depot was located at the northwest corner of 7th St. North and 3rd Avenue North. 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.[4]

The last passenger rail station to operate in Minneapolis was the Minneapolis Great Northern Depot, which was served by Amtrak until 1978.

2009 station

Metro Transit's first new Siemens S70, #201, arrives at a 2012 unveiling to the news media at the 2009 platforms at Target Field station. It bears Green Line signage, though this was months before the Green Line opened.

The station was opened in 2009 to serve Northstar Commuter Rail and the Hiawatha Line, now METRO Blue Line. The light rail line was extended from its existing terminus at Warehouse District / Hennepin Avenue to serve the new station. This was the first time for Minneapolis regaining access to passenger rail for 31 years.

The Minnesota Twins pledged $2.6 million for its construction.[7]

2014 addition

The 2014 addition was designed by New York-based Perkins Eastman, to provide additional platform space for both METRO Green and Blue Lines, as well as provide community gathering space.[8] The additional platform is referred to as Platform 2, while the original platform became Platform 1.

Future plans

The Green Line extension, also known as the Southwest Corridor to Eden Prairie and the Blue Line extension, also known as the Bottineau Boulevard to Brooklyn Park will serve Target Field. The Northern Lights Express to Duluth would originate at Target Field.

Potential regional rail routes from Target Field station include the Dakota Rail Corridor to Hutchinson, the Dan Patch Corridor to Northfield, the Little Crow Line to Willmar, the Red Rock Corridor to Hastings, and the Minnesota Prairie Line to Norwood Young America.

Operation

Light rail trains serve both Platforms 1 and 2. Each train stops twice at the station to serve each platform.

The Northstar Commuter Rail one-way fares from this station range from $1.00 to $3.25 on weekdays and $1.00 to $2.75 on weekends, depending on the destination.[9] The Northstar Line provides five morning and five afternoon trips each weekday.[10]

Recognition

Target Field Station won a 2015 Institute Honor Award for Regional and Urban Design by the American Institute of Architects.[8]

Additional photos

References

  1. ↑ "Twin Cities Metropolitan Area Transit System" (PDF) (Map). Metro Transit. August 19, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Minnesota's New Star to begin service Nov. 16 – Metropolitan Council news release". Archived from the original on 2009-11-19. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  3. ↑ "Home". theinterchange.net.
  4. 1 2 3 Hofsommer, Don L. (2005). Minneapolis and the Age of Railways: And the Age of Railways. University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 0-8166-4501-9.
  5. ↑ Minneapolis Warehouse District Designation Study. City of Minneapolis, Planning commission. October 2009
  6. ↑ Donovan L. Hofsommer (2009). The Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway: A Photographic History. U of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-0-8166-5131-3.
  7. ↑ Paul Levy and Joy Powell, Finally, all aboard Northstar rail, Star Tribune, December 10, 2007.
  8. 1 2 Leigh Painter, Kristen (10 January 2015). "Target Field Station wins national design award". Star Tribune. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
  9. ↑ "Fares – Metro Transit".
  10. ↑ "Target Field Station". Metro Transit. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
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