Minnesota Valley Transit Authority


The Minnesota Valley Transit Authority, also known by the acronym MVTA, is a public transportation agency that provides fixed-route and demand-responsive public bus services between various communities in the southern portion of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, and to select destinations within Minneapolis and St. Paul, located in Minnesota.
The agency's name refers to the river valley along the Minnesota River in the region.

Service area

The MVTA service area currently includes the cities of Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Lakeville and Rosemount in Dakota County; and the cities of Savage, Shakopee and Prior Lake in Scott County.
MVTA also provides service from these areas to key destinations in the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, as well as the Mall of America in Bloomington.

Governance and structure

MVTA was created in 1990 through a joint powers agreement between the member municipalities and counties. The agreement was executed under a 1984 Minnesota statute that allowed suburban communities in the metropolitan area to create their own transit agencies independent of Metro Transit, the region's primary public transit provider. MVTA was one of several suburban transit agencies that were formed as a result.
MVTA is governed by an eight-member board, each member representing the governing body of a member jurisdiction, plus one at-large member and several ex officio members.
In 2002, the City of Prior Lake withdrew membership from the MVTA however they rejoined in September, 2014.
In 2013, the MVTA starts providing service to Lakeville, even though it is not a part of the company's service party.
In September 2014, the City of Shakopee had its membership administered.

Service

MVTA's service is designed primarily to transport passengers from the residential suburbs within its service area to job and activity centers in Minneapolis and St. Paul. While the majority of the agency's ridership is concentrated during peak periods of travel, MVTA service operates seven days per week and up to 18 hours per day on some routes.

METRO Red Line">Red Line (Minnesota)">METRO Red Line

The METRO Red Line is a bus rapid transit line running along Cedar Avenue from the Mall of America to Apple Valley Transit Station. Due to extreme traffic congestion between Highway 62/Mall of America & County Road 42, enhanced public transit was needed. The METRO Red Line was chosen for the transitway as an alternative for regular drivers who want a faster way across the Cedar Avenue Bridge. Additions for the new service include: The addition of many new stations and park & ride lots, and changes to existing bus routes & the addition of new local and express bus service. MVTA began service on the METRO Red Line on June 22, 2013.

METRO Orange Line">Orange Line (Minnesota)">METRO Orange Line

In January 2005, MNDOT released their plans to improve transit service on the corridor in I-35W. They chose BRT as the best option. Changes will include: the replacement of Metro Transit Route 535 and an route extension to Kenrick Avenue P&R. HOV lanes have been extended north to 42nd Street, with a freeway median station at 46th Street. Future MNDOT and Metro Transit plans show HOV lane extensions to Downtown Minneapolis and relocating the Lake St. station to the median of the freeway. Metro Transit will be the primary operator of the line. Construction started in 2018, with the line anticipated to open in 2021.

Robert Street transitway

In 2007, Dakota County completed a study on the Robert Street Corridor. The modes of transit considered are light rail transit, streetcar and bus rapid transit. The MVTA communities of Eagan and Rosemount are included in the south end of the corridor.

BlueXpress

BlueXpress was a public transit service operated by the two cities of Prior Lake and Shakopee. It consisted of five bus routes, the 490, 491, 492, 496, and 498.
In September 2014, the two cities reached a deal with the MVTA to merge their services. As of 1 January 2015, all former BlueXpress services and its five routes are now operated by the MVTA.

Bus route

Route 420