Lake Street/Midtown (Metro Transit station)

Infobox Station
name=Lake Street/Midtown


image_size=
image_caption=Hiawatha Light Rail car approaching Midtown Station
address=2310 Lake Street East
line=rail color box|system=MNMT|line=Hiawatha
other=Routes 7, 21, 27 and 53
platform=Island platform
tracks=
parking=170 spaces
bicycle=
baggage_check=
passengers=
pass_year=
pass_percent=
pass_system=
opened=June 26, 2004
closed=
rebuilt=
ADA=Yes
code=
owned=Metro Transit
zone=
services=
mpassengers=

Lake Street/Midtown is a light rail station on the Hiawatha Line in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the seventh stop southbound.

This station is a bridge above Lake Street along Minnesota State Highway 55 in Minneapolis. This is a center-platform station. Along with the Franklin Avenue station, the Lake Street/Midtown station is one of the two above-grade stations on the Hiawatha Line. Service began at this station when the Hiawatha Line opened on June 26, 2004. A six-week transit strike, problems with joints in the welded rail servicing the $715 million Hiawatha Light Rail system, and delays with car deliveries delayed the opening.

The Midtown Station is one of four stations on Hiawatha Avenue, including 38th Street Station, 46th Street Station, and 50th Street Station. The Hiawatha Corridor features a wide variety of architecture including grain elevators, subsidized housing, and well-established neighborhoods, such as Longfellow and Corcoran.

A complex array of public transit, including light rail and bus, multi-lane roadways, and foot traffic all converge upon the Lake Street/Hiawatha Avenue intersection. Even before the current high traffic volume, city planners had long-recognized the importance of the Hiawatha Avenue Corridor as a key artery for the city, connecting downtown Minneapolis and the airport.

During the 1970s, an eight-lane highway was considered for the corridor. Just north of this station, between it and Franklin Avenue, the Hiawatha Line crosses Minnesota State Highway 55 and the Lake Street/Midtown station is located on the west side of the road.

The Midtown Farmer's Market, a seasonal outdoor venue for Minnesota/Wisconsin grown produce runs Saturday mornings (8-1pm) from May until the end of October on the site. Meat, cheese, bread, eggs, flowers, produce, crafts, music and family-oriented entertainment are included.

There are two park-and-ride lots near the Lake Street/Midtown station totaling 239 parking spaces. These are the only two park-and-ride lots on the Hiawatha Line within Minneapolis (there are other parking spaces to the south, outside the city).

Bus connections

From Lake Street/Midtown station, there is a direct connection to bus routes 7, 21, 27, and 53

Notable places nearby

* Longfellow neighborhood
* Corcoran neighborhood
* Minnehaha Mall & Hi-Lake Shopping Center
* Midtown YWCA
* Midtown Farmer's Market [http://www.midtownpublicmarket.org]
* South High School
* [http://www.greeninstitute.org/ Green Institute]

References

* [http://www.startribune.com Minneapolis Star Tribune]
* [http://hiawathaavenue.com The Hiawatha Project]

External links

* [http://www.metrocouncil.org/transportation/lrt/stations/lake.htm Metropolitan Council: Lake Street/Midtown Station]