News
Metro to Kick Off MetroLink 20th Anniversary Celebrations on July 26
Patti Beck
Director of Communications
314-982-1440
WHAT: News conference to highlight the success and impact of MetroLink in the St. Louis region over the past two decades.
WHEN: Friday, July 26, 2013; 10:30 a.m.
WHERE: Grand MetroLink Station, Scott Avenue Transit Plaza area, located at 3560 Scott Avenue below the Grand Bridge
WHO: Speakers will include John Nations, Bi-State Development Agency/Metro President & CEO; Charlie Dooley, St. Louis County Executive; Mark Kern, St. Clair County Board Chairman; Charles Bryson for St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay, and former Congressman Jerry Costello. Also in attendance will be members of the Bi-State Development Agency’s Board of Commissioners, current and former MetroLink employees and other guests in addition to the general public.
SIGNIFICANCE: In celebration of the 20th anniversary of MetroLink, Metro will host a special event designed to recognize the importance and impact of the award-winning light rail system over the past two decades. The event will kick off with the arrival of Nations, Board of Commissioners members, and other speakers and guests on MetroLink. A live band named The VCRs will perform at the Scott Avenue Transit Plaza– entertaining the crowd before and after the event. In addition to the formal remarks, proclamations declaring July 31 as “MetroLink Day” in the region will also be presented to long-time MetroLink employees.
MetroLink debuted in the St. Louis area in July 1993 with stations stretching from near Lambert-St. Louis International Airport to East St. Louis, Illinois. Today, the light-rail system has 37 stations, stretching 46 miles, connecting citizens traveling between Lambert-St. Louis International Airport; Shrewsbury, Missouri, downtown St. Louis and communities as far east as Scott Air Force Base near Shiloh, Illinois. Bi-State area residents rely on MetroLink for transportation to work, school, entertainment venues, health care facilities, and other important destinations across St. Louis City and County and St. Clair County. Those trips are reflected in the more than 17 million boardings a year. Over the past 20 years, MetroLink has also served as a catalyst for economic development in the region, with an estimated $2 billion in residential and commercial development projects already completed along the light rail system and other plans for development underway.
Friday evening, July 26 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., volunteer Metro Ambassadors will hand out MetroLink 20th anniversary commemorative paper banks to customers at various MetroLink Stations in Missouri and Illinois.
The anniversary celebration continues with live music on a special MetroLink train on Saturday, July 27 and Sunday, July 28. DJ Nune will perform on the MetroLink Red Line on Saturday starting at the Fairview Heights Station at 1:02 p.m. to the North Hanley Station and back to Fairview Heights. On Sunday, The Brewbadours will perform on the Blue Line beginning at Fairview Heights at 1:12 p.m. to the Shrewsbury Station and back to Fairview Heights. Regular passes or tickets are required to ride MetroLink during the concerts. More information about when the onboard concert train will arrive at stations on the Red and Blue Lines is available at www.metrostlouis.org. Metro Ambassadors will also hand out the special MetroLink 20th anniversary paper banks on the train during both weekend concerts.
The Bi-State Development Agency/Metro (BSDA/Metro) is the operator of the Metro public transportation system for the St. Louis region, which includes the 87 vehicle, 46-mile MetroLink light rail system; 374 MetroBus vehicle fleet that operates on 75 MetroBus routes; and Metro Call‑A‑Ride, a paratransit fleet of 121 vans.
BSDA/Metro also owns and operates St. Louis Downtown Airport and its surrounding industrial business park, and the Gateway Arch Riverboats, as well as operates the Gateway Arch Revenue Collections Center, the Gateway Arch Transportation System, and the Gateway Arch Parking Facility.