Monitor in a Minute December 2021

By JANE McCLURE

Transit lines suspended
Longtime area bus Routes 16 and 84 are among 16 Metro Transit bus routes that suspended service as of Dec. 4. Many other routes throughout the Twin Cities transit network will have reduced trip frequency and schedule changes. Changes come as transit ridership has declined regionally and nationally. It’s expected the trends will have implications for current services going forward and for transit services on the drawing boards.
Metro Transit typically makes bus, rapid bus and rail schedule changes quarterly. More changes are possible in 2022.
Route 16, once one of the busiest bus routes, used to connect the Minneapolis and St. Paul downtowns via University Avenue. The opening of Green Line light rail in 2014 meant cutbacks to Route 16, which most recently ended at Fairview Avenue.
Route 84, which connects south Minneapolis destinations to Roseville, follows much the same route in area neighborhoods that A Line bus rapid transit has followed since 2016.
One issue driving the current schedule changes is the challenge in hiring bus drivers. “Over the past couple months in particular we’ve had difficulty hiring bus operators, which is a challenge when you need to have 1,100 to 1,200 operators,” said Metro Transit Service Development Director Adam Harrington said. The transit agency has stepped up hiring incentives including signing bonuses.
“Right now we’re about 80 operators short of where we need to be,” said Harrington.
About five percent of existing service hours will be reduced as Metro Transit seeks to improve reliability of service, said Harrington. Many of the routes being suspended are parallel to existing rail or bus rapid transit lines.
Another issue Metro Transit officials are trying to balance is that of equity among neighborhoods.
Read a detailed review of changes at https://www.metrotransit.org/quarterly-service-changes-begin-saturday-dec-4

Como gets $2 million in funding
Como Park Zoo and Conservatory got a key boost Nov. 3 when the St. Paul City Council accepted $2.910 million in state funding.
The funding goes to the Department of Parks and Recreation, which oversees the Como facilities. It is from the state’s Legacy Amendment Arts & Cultural Heritage fund. The funding requires a grant agreement with the state, and an indemnification agreement between the state and city.
The money will be used for various programmatic development and preservation projects, including educational and inclusive programming, special exhibits, garden preservation and habitat renewal that would not be possible to offer guests as part of Como’s base funding. The funds are for fiscal years 2022 and 2023.

New tobacco rules set
Stringent new regulations on tobacco products take effect in December, with unanimous St. Paul City Council approval Nov. 3. The ordinance is hailed by anti-tobacco and health advocates as another step in protecting public health and deterring use of tobacco products by youth and communities targeted by the tobacco industry.
Foes of the measures said the council is overreaching and with one regulatory change, contradicting state law.
St. Paul regulates vaping and e-cigarette products in the same way it regulates tobacco products, so those items fall under the ordinance.
The ordinance reduces the number of available licenses for tobacco sales to 150, from about 190 in place today. Businesses can retain their license but the numbers will be winnowed as business close and licenses are given up. It could take years for a license to become available under that scenario.