MVTA bus service coming to Rosemount

Talk about it

After years of paying taxes to the Minnesota Valley Transit Authority Rosemount residents will finally get to use it without driving to Apple Valley or Eagan. The MVTA has announced plans to launch an express bus service Sept. 8 that will take riders from Rosemount to downtown Minneapolis.

“This is a long time coming,” said mayor Bill Droste, who serves on the MVTA Board. “We need alternate transportation here.”

Route 479 will pick up riders twice daily in the Rosemount Community Center parking lot and head north. Two daily trips in the afternoon will bring riders back. The service will also serve the 157th Street Transit Station with buses direct to downtown bypassing the Apple Valley Transit Station.

Droste said Rosemount residents have been paying into the MVTA for years and that Route 479 is a start. He hopes, though, that more routes and more consistent pick ups will follow soon.

“Ultimately we need to have a transit station here in Rosemount,” said Droste.

Droste has been vocal at MVTA meetings trying to get something in Rosemount. He said a parking lot assessment at the Apple Valley Transit Station counted more than 100 cars registered to Rosemount residents, revealing that they do use bus services. He said he personally knows people that use the Eagan Transit Station as well.

MVTA customer service manager Robin Selvig said the board has been working on adding the route since this spring and is excited to start offering it.

With gas prices up Selvig said she anticipates the new route will get some immediate use. She added that as residents become more aware of the service it will likely grow.

“I think transit usage is always a growing thing,” said Selvig. “It’s a huge step to get out of the car and onto a bus.”

The two northbound trips will depart the Rosemount Community Center at 6:19 a.m. and 6:48 a.m. These trips will serve the the 157th Street Station at 6:29 a.m. and 6:58 a.m. and will arrive at the 3rd and 7th station downtown at 7:20 and 7:41 a.m.

Two Route 479 southbound trips will depart Gateway Ramp at 4:03 and 4:31 p.m., arriving at the 157th Street Station at 5 and 5:33 p.m.. The buses will arrive at the Rosemount Community Center Park and Ride at 5:10 and 5:43 p.m.

Parking at the community center will be located south of the ice arena. Signs will show riders where they should leave their vehicles. More than 50 spaces will be reserved for park and riders.

The Rosemount Community Center Parking lot was chosen from several options because it has available parking throughout the day, Selvig said.

On the first day of service, Sept. 8, Selvig said they will have some sort of kick off event. She wasn’t sure yet what that will be.

In addition to the the express service Rosemount residents can use the all day flex route on Route 420, which travels within the city and to the Apple Valley Transit Station to make connections to other routes.

For more information on the new route call 952-882-7500.

Tags: mvta bus service, news, rosemount