Sometimes the fastest way to get somewhere is by standing in one place; that only works at bus stops, however.
University students and area residents exploring the Twin Cities have 32 Metro Transit bus routes that service both University campuses and surrounding neighborhoods.
The main bus artery on the Minneapolis campus runs along Washington Avenue. Eighteen routes stop between Willey Hall and Huron Avenue. Four bus routes run through the St. Paul campus.
Ten No. 52 buses connect students to Twin Cities suburbs and communities — Uptown, Golden Valley, Edina, Columbia Heights, Highland Park, Brookdale, St. Louis Park and Bloomington. The No. 52-E route connecting the Minneapolis campus to downtown St. Paul will be discontinued Sept. 7.
The main east-west bus route is No. 16, connecting both campuses to downtown St. Paul and Minneapolis. It runs 24 hours a day.
Bus fare depends on the type of bus and time the trip is taken. Regular bus rides cost $1 while express buses, those which take the highway, are $1.50. Rush-hour riders need to add 50 cents to either fare between 6 and 9 a.m., and between 3:30 and 6:30 p.m.
In addition to Metro Transit buses, four University bus routes transport students to classes within and between campuses for free. The Campus Connector links the West Bank and East Bank to the St. Paul campus between 7 a.m and 10 p.m., Monday through Friday.
For more information, visit www.metrocouncil.org/transit/uofm.htm or call 341-4BUS.
St. Paul and Minneapolis campuses have Campus Circulators which operate within each campus. The West Bank and East Bank are connected via the Washington Avenue Bridge Circulator. All of these buses run every 15 minutes between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays.
Weekend and evening campus bus service is provided by the Campus Express bus, which runs between the St. Paul campus, East and West banks.
Students who need specialized services can make reservations with University Paratransit up to two days in advance. It offers curb-to-curb service between 7:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays.