With events spread throughout the Green Line corridor, light rail will play a major role in this year’s Northern Sparks arts festival.

That’s especially true for CHAOS ON THE GREEN LINE, one of 70 public art pieces that will be featured during the all-night festival that begins on Saturday, June 10, and continues through sunrise the following morning. 

CHAOS ON THE GREEN LINE invites participants to don a virtual reality cardboard viewer while riding between Snelling Avenue and Lexington Parkway. It is believed to be the world’s first virtual reality experience using public transit.

“As the train rolls by, the world as you know it will fall away from view and be replaced by a whole new world we’ve created – one affected by climate change,” said Todd Boss, executive and artistic director at Motionpoems.

Boss created the experience with help from dozens of animators and creatives from local agencies like Pixel Farm, Manufacture, Egg Creative and Fallon Worldwide.

The GPS-activated visuals reflect Northern Spark’s “Climate Chaos, People Rising” theme, which encourages people to a radically climate-altered world and actions they can take to reduce their environmental impact. 

Boss said the experience is more poetic than blunt, but that he hopes the impact will still be plenty powerful. “I don’t know that it will change people’s minds but I do think it will touch them and stir a lot of emotions and thoughts the way good art should,” he said.

Story circles, group weaving, a film festival and a night market in the Little Mekong cultural district are among the many other planned activities. Activities will be focused around several Green Line station areas, including the U.S. Bank Stadium, West Bank, East Bank, Snelling Avenue, Lexington Parkway, Western Avenue and Union Depot stations.

A light rail train that was wrapped in custom-designed artwork promoting the event will also be in service throughout the evening.

Eventgoers can ride free on all buses and trains during the event using a downloadable pass available on the event website. Green Line trains will run at least every 30 minutes throughout the evening. 

To learn more about Northern Spark or download a free ride pass, visit 2017.northernspark.org.

New 40-foot buses that recently began arriving feature a more open seating arrangement and several other improvements.

The Gillig-made, standard-diesel buses replace three rows of front-facing seats on the passenger side with a single row of inward facing seats that customers can put in the up or down position.

The change is intended to make riding a crowded bus more comfortable and to provide additional space for mobility devices, strollers or other large objects.

The buses also have an easier to use wheelchair securement system and frameless windows that are easier to maintain and better looking. These features were also included in the buses used on the A Line, a rapid bus service on Snelling Avenue.

Ten of the new buses will arrive this year. The buses will be sent to the East Metro, Heywood and Nicollet garages.

Metro Transit has around 900 buses in its fleet, the majority of which are 40-foot standard diesel buses. 

To provide feedback on the new buses, contact Customer Relations. 

Some eager job seekers are getting an opportunity to pursue careers as Metro Transit technicians. 

The Metro Transit Technician program combines workforce readiness and on-the-job training, support toward earning a degree and an internship. Participants can enter the program with little to no experience but apply for full-time roles by the end of the two-year program. 

Participants pursuing careers in bus maintenance are currently enrolled at Hennepin Technical College while working as interns in several of Metro Transit's bus service garages. A second group of participants pursuing careers in rail vehicle and systems maintenance recently began their on-the-job training. 

WCCO recently caught up with a few of the participants working in the Hiawatha Operations & Maintenance Facility, where they were repairing a light-rail vehicle.  

    > Technician training program gets national recognition

The Metro Transit Technician program is not currently accepting new applications. Job seekers interested in learning more about career opportunities at Metro Transit should visit metrotransit.org/jobs. 

When Augsburg College began building its new Hagfors Center for Science, Business, and Religion in 2015, the college lost about 20 percent of the 1,000 parking spaces at its West Bank campus.

The sudden loss in parking led Beth Reissenweber, the school’s Vice President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer, to take an active role in promoting a culture that placed sustainable transportation options ahead of driving.

To set the tone, she began commuting from Edina on Route 578.

“I thought it was really important to lead by example,” Reissenweber said. “I wanted to inspire others at Augsburg to try transit so I gave up my heated parking and started taking the bus.”

Reissenweber, also contacted Transit for Livable Communities and Metro Transit to create learning opportunities for her staff, including a light rail tour, Nice Ride bike rental education, and carpooling classes.

“Once construction started, we changed how we talked with our employees about commuting,” she said. “Instead of leading with parking options, we started leading with transit and multi-modal commuting options as the preferred method to get to work.”

Reissenweber moved the needle at Augsburg so quickly that she was recognized at Metro Transit’s annual Commuter Choice Awards last month with an honorable mention in the individual category. Augsburg won in the employer category.

Reissenweber attended last year’s awards to learn how to create a transit-friendly campus, and said she was delighted to come back a year later as a winner.

“I feel proud to be recognized for my small part in a huge undertaking for the college, and Augsburg’s award is a wonderful reinforcement of our passion to make a positive impact in our community,” she said.

The Commuter Choice Awards also celebrated efforts by several other building owners, employers and organizations that have supported sustainable transportation.

Among the other recipients were the Minnesota Orchestra, which offers discounts to bicyclists, and the building managers at the Minneapolis Grain Exchange, which built a fitness center and bike storage area to encourage active commuting.

The awards were presented by Metro Transit in partnership with regional Transportation Management Organizations, including Commuter Services, Move Minneapolis and St. Paul Smart Trips. A panel of Twin Cities transportation experts and thought leaders evaluated the entries and selected the winners.

While Reissenweber was thrilled with the recognition, the real rewards have come from her experience using transit.

“I walk more, I feel more connected with my community, I save money, I’m less stressed, I’m helping the environment and I can multi-task while I get to work,” she said. “It’s such a win-win."

Photo: Beth Reissenweber, far right, with colleagues from Augsburg College at the 2017 Commuter Choice Awards

2017 Commuter Choice Award Honorable Mentions & Winners

Building Owner/Management Company

Winner: Minneapolis Grain Exchange, Inc. 

Minneapolis Grain Exchange, Inc built a new, state-of the-art fitness center with showers, changing facilities, and lockers. The new facilities complement the 700 square foot secure bike storage room; both the tenant businesses and their employers have found both amenities to be critical to the adoption of active commuting to the building.

Honorable mentions: McGough Facility Management/Butler Square and Wells Fargo

Commuter Benefits Coordinator

Winner: Brian Nelson, Best Buy

Brian Nelson led the expansion of commuter benefits at Best Buy stores across the country, providing access to pre-tax transportation accounts for all employees. Additionally, he oversaw the installation of electric vehicle charging stations at the corporate campus and established an official training for teleworkers.

Honorable mention: Samantha McKeough, HealthPartners

Employer

Winner: Augsburg College

Augsburg College lost a significant amount of parking for a construction project and employed a multi-tiered approach that engaged the campus community at all levels to change perceptions about transportation. Campus leadership implemented a broad set of proven travel demand management strategies which have led to a 76 percent increase in Metropass users along with noticeable growth in carpooling and bicycling.

Honorable mentions: Mall of America and Minnesota Literacy Council

Government Entity

Winner: Stop for Me Campaign

The Stop for Me Campaign was a yearlong collaboration among St. Paul neighborhood organizations, advocates, and police, working together to encourage safer, more courtesy driving behavior at intersections, crosswalks, and parking lots. Together the group held 60 crosswalk events during 2016 to raise awareness and improve pedestrian safety.

Individual

Winner: Marc Berg, Friends of the Downtown Minneapolis Bicycle Center

Marc Berg is founder of Friends of the Downtown Bicycle Center, sharing his vision for a public bike center in downtown Minneapolis with a many stakeholders and potential allies in the community. He has also organizing community support for bicycle facilities in St. Louis Park and is a volunteer with the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition.

Honorable mentions: Beth Reissenweber, Augsburg College and Nick Wright, Minnesota Life College

Organization

Winner: Minnesota Orchestra

The Minnesota Orchestra established the Bike to Orchestra Hall program, which offers a special 50% discount to future concerts to anyone who shows their gear at the Box Office. The program serves as an audience development effort that encourages people to come as they are and enjoy music comfortably.

Honorable mention: Minnesota Life College

We asked, and you answered. After planned light-rail maintenance and construction caused buses to replace trains on two recent weekends, Metro Transit wanted to learn what you thought about our Rider Alert subscription service.

By signing up for Rider Alerts, you can get route-specific information about planned detours and service changes through text message and e-mail. To sign up, visit metrotransit.org/rider-alerts. 

A survey was sent to customers who subscribe to Rider Alerts for the Blue and Green lines. After a fantastic survey response, we wanted to share some of the results. The takeaway: we all appreciate a heads up. 

While the feedback was largely positive, we also received valuable insight into how we can keep you better informed in the future.

Providing more advanced notice and more consistently using Rider Alerts to share information about unplanned service impacts are among the issues we're focusing on. We're also looking at how we can make it simpler to sign up for Rider Alerts. 

If you missed out on our recent survey but would still like to provide feedback, we’re always ready to hear how we can do better. Please submit your feedback through Customer Relations metrotransit.org/contact-us. 

   > Sign up for Rider Alerts

   > Looking for your bus or train? Map It!

   > Texting to find the NexTrip

A 40-kilowatt solar array was recently installed on the top level of the parking ramp at the Maplewood Mall Transit Center, near the Maplewood Mall.

The panels will help offset a portion of the energy used at the transit center, saving approximately $6,000 in utility costs annually. In addition to lowering energy costs, the system will help Metro Transit better understand how to use solar arrays at other existing and future facilities.

Proposals to install arrays atop six Metro Transit support buildings, including several bus garages, are now under review.

Open since 2013, the Maplewood Mall Transit Center also features a geothermal heating and cooling system and energy efficient LED lighting. It is served by multiple local and express bus routes.​

Solar panels are also in use at Metro Transit's 610 & Noble Parkway Park & Ride, Rail Support Facility and at several bus stops throughout the region. Metro Transit is also supporting solar energy by purchasing power produced from installations at two Council wastewater treatment plants. 

Metro Transit is one of a handful of agencies to obtain Gold Level certification through the American Public Transportation Association's Sustainability Commitment Program. 

Metro Transit Police Chief John Harrington was celebrated as one of the state’s top law enforcement leaders by the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association this week.

Harrington received the association’s Richard W. Schaller Award, which recognizes service to the community and the profession. Harrington accepted the award at the association’s Executive Training Institute in St. Cloud.

Association leaders applauded Harrington’s efforts to encourage diversity in law enforcement, improve police-community relations and “shine an analytical light on daily practices.”

“When it comes to advancing 21st Century policing issues, few chiefs have been more dedicated or have garnered more results than Chief Harrington,” said Hugo McPhee, the association’s immediate past president and Chief of Police for the Three Rivers Park District.

Harrington became Metro Transit’s seventh Police Chief in 2012. He previously served as the Police Chief for the City of St. Paul and as a Minnesota State Senator.

Under Harrington’s leadership, the Metro Transit Police Department has expanded to more than 100 full-time officers, nearly a third of whom come from underrepresented communities and backgrounds. The department has also greatly expanded its community outreach efforts.

As an active association member, Harrington helped explore ways chiefs could improve the hiring process and help build departments that reflect the communities they service. 

Harrington has also served on the association’s legislative committee, advocating for policies that would reduce domestic and gang violence, provide better responses to human trafficking and keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill.

“This award is really about the work that the women and men of our department have done,” Harrington said. “It is gratifying to know my colleagues saw the things we’re doing at Metro Transit as being of benefit to the profession, the Chief’s association and the statewide community we all serve.”

In 2015, Harrington was recognized as the Transit Professional of the Year​ by the Minnesota Public Transit Association.​

    > Meet the Chief

    > Officer of the year recognized for 'servant leadership'

    > Awards and Recognition