A coalition of legislators and city and county leaders is assembling in Washington County to drive a plan for public transit along Interstate 94.

The idea is to build support for light rail, rapid-bus transit or other alternative transportation to counter growing vehicle traffic along one of the metro area's prime commuting corridors. I-94, with Woodbury and Afton to the south and Lake Elmo, Oakdale and West Lakeland Township to the north, funnels tens of thousands of commuters to jobs in St. Paul and Minneapolis.

"We're going to move forward aggressively with this," said Wayne Sandberg, the county's assistant engineer.

About 110,000 vehicles use I-94 daily near Radio Drive in Woodbury, according to Minnesota Department of Transportation figures. That's similar to the 114,000 vehicles on I-94 near Maple Grove -- a stretch considered one of the metro's busiest.

A $1 million transit study, which the coalition intends to launch in 2009, would examine the land on either side of I-94 for potential transitways. "It just doesn't look at the confines of the road, it looks broader," said Jim Schug, Washington County's administrator. Funding could come from several sources, including federal appropriations and revenue from the county's new transit sales tax, he said.

A companion study, by MnDOT, will examine traffic patterns, interchanges, lanes, freeway accesses and other highway features between Century Avenue in Oakdale and the St. Croix River bridge. That study will cost about $400,000.

Transit is taking on new urgency in the metro area because of the emergence of the Counties Transit Improvement Board, said Mike Rogers, a transportation planner in Washington County. "There was a lot of hurry up and wait. Now it's hurry up and get something done," he said. The board, known as CTIB, distributes transit tax money collected in Washington, Dakota, Ramsey, Anoka and Hennepin counties.

Members of the coalition want to reduce traffic congestion on I-94 in Washington County without continually adding lanes to an already busy freeway. Many commuters come from Hudson and other cities in western Wisconsin, and most park-and-ride lots are filled to capacity by early morning.

The coalition calls for Washington County and cities along I-94 to join St. Paul, Maplewood and eventually Hudson to create a potent lobbying force in the ever-competitive race for transit projects in the metro area. Once that happens, the coalition will try to recruit "private partners" such as chambers of commerce and Maplewood-based 3M Co., one of the largest employers in the east metro.

Myra Peterson, a Washington County board member, said she "has a dream" that I-94 transit someday will link large institutions and businesses such as Globe College in Oakdale, Metro State University in St. Paul and Hartford Insurance in Woodbury.

Perhaps the I-94 corridor should be known as the "Gateway Corridor," said Clint Gridley, Woodbury's city administrator.

Others participating in a coalition meeting this week in Stillwater were Sen. Kathy Saltzman, DFL-Woodbury, Rep. Marsha Swails, DFL-Woodbury, Rep. Julie Bunn, DFL-Lake Elmo, Mayor Bill Hargis of Woodbury, all five Washington County commissioners, county engineers and representatives of other cities along I-94.

Kevin Giles • 651-298-1554