MINNEAPOLIS — More people are riding the Northstar Commuter Rail Line between Big Lake and Minneapolis.
Ridership increased 15 percent during the first six months of 2013, compared with the same period last year.
Metro Transit made permanent a fare reduction in May that lowered most Northstar tickets by $1. A new station in Ramsey and significant ridership increases at the Big Lake and Coon Rapids stations offset decreases from the Anoka and Fridley stations.
Northstar runs 41 miles between Big Lake and downtown Minneapolis. It had 384,183 riders during the first six months of the year. That compared with 333,780 in the first six months last year.
The Northstar Link bus service, which transports commuters from St. Cloud to the train station at Big Lake, also saw an increase in ridership.
