Southwest LRT Trail is a system of shared-use paths for bicycles and pedestrian paths that extends through several western suburbs of

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

. They are operated by the

Three Rivers Park District Three Rivers Park District is a special park district serving the suburban areas of the Twin Cities including suburban Hennepin, Carver, Dakota, Scott, and Ramsey counties. Three Rivers's mission is "To promote environmental stewardship through ...

. Two former rail corridors originally built by the Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway were acquired and converted to trails in anticipation of the Southwest Corridor light rail project. The two former railway corridors are now divided into three distinct trails.

Trail segments

Cedar Lake LRT Regional Trail

The ''Cedar Lake LRT Regional Trail'' is the main paved path running from the west end of the

Midtown Greenway The Midtown Greenway is a rail trail in Minneapolis, Minnesota that follows the path of an abandoned route of the Milwaukee Road railway. It is considered under segregated cycle facilities. Used both recreationally and for commuting, the p ...

in Minneapolis through St. Louis Park to

Hopkins, Minnesota Hopkins is a small suburban city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, located west of Minneapolis. Hopkins was the headquarters of Minneapolis-Moline, which was a large manufacturer of tractors and agricultural equipment in the United ...

. It has a length of , and is paved with asphalt. This trail is named very similarly to the

Cedar Lake Trail Cedar Lake Trail is a , shared-use path in the U.S. state of Minnesota, from downtown Minneapolis to the neighboring suburb of St. Louis Park. The trail begins at its eastern trailhead in downtown Minneapolis and continues west to Minnesota Sta ...

in Minneapolis and the North Cedar Lake Regional Trail continuation of that trail (formerly known as the Hutchinson Spur Trail) which also extends through St. Louis Park to Hopkins in a roughly parallel route farther north. The North Cedar Lake Regional Trail meets the Cedar Lake LRT Regional Trail just east of the intersection of

US 169 U.S. Route 169 (US 169) is a north-south U.S highway that currently runs for 966 miles (1,555 km) from the city of Virginia, Minnesota to Tulsa, Oklahoma at Memorial Drive. Route description Oklahoma US 169 is a major north–south ...

and Excelsior Boulevard in Hopkins. The trail runs along a former Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway right-of-way: The rail line was built in 1870, and was eventually acquired by the

Chicago and North Western Railway The Chicago and North Western was a Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the "North Western". The railroad operated more than of track at the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states befor ...

, who abandoned the line in 1990. The Cedar Lake LRT trail is temporarily closed for the Southwest LRT project, while the North Cedar Lake trail remains open.

Minnesota River Bluffs LRT Regional Trail

The ''Minnesota River Bluffs LRT Regional Trail'' is a trail that extends along the former Minneapolis and St. Louis right-of-way that brought the trail to Hopkins. It has a crushed limestone surface. It runs from the Hopkins Depot through

Hopkins Hopkins is an English, Welsh and Irish patronymic surname. The English name means "son of Hob". ''Hob'' was a diminutive of ''Robert'', itself deriving from the Germanic warrior name ''Hrod-berht'', translated as "renowned-fame". The Robert spell ...

Minnetonka Minnetonka ( ) is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. A western suburb of the Twin Cities, Minnetonka is located about west of downtown Minneapolis. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, ...

Eden Prairie Eden Prairie is a city southwest of downtown Minneapolis in Hennepin County and the 16th-largest city in the State of Minnesota, United States. As of the 2020 census, it has a population of 64,198. The city is adjacent to the north bank of th ...

, and

Chanhassen Chanhassen is a city about southwest of Minneapolis in Carver County and partially in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The southwest edge of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul suburbs, there is a mix of residential neighborhoods and rural l ...

. Together, the Cedar Lake LRT Trail and the Minnesota River Bluffs LRT Trail are about long. This trail has a partial closure south from Pioneer Trail in Chanhassen since 2014 due to significant mudslides and unsafe conditions and a detour is posted. Reconstruction of the damaged trail section is scheduled for summer 2020. The trail has about 250,000 people in attendance annually. The trail features bluffs of the

Minnesota River The Minnesota River ( dak, Mnísota Wakpá) is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately 332 miles (534 km) long, in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It drains a watershed of in Minnesota and about in South Dakota and Iowa. It ris ...

and the lakes and forests of the area. The pedestrian bridge on the trail that spans Valley View Road replaced a railway bridge. Dubbed the Graffiti Bridge, it was featured in a 1990

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

film. The bridge was a bottleneck in the growing city of Eden Prairie, and was demolished in 1991. The route of the Southwest LRT light rail line is being built to follow the entire Cedar Lake LRT Regional Trail and a portion of the Minnesota River Bluffs LRT Regional Trail before turning southward near Shady Oak Road in Minnetonka.

Lake Minnetonka LRT Regional Trail

The ''Lake Minnetonka LRT Regional Trail'' runs for from 8th Avenue in Hopkins through

Excelsior Excelsior, a Latin comparative word often translated as "ever upward" or "even higher", may refer to: Arts and entertainment Literature and poetry * "Excelsior" (Longfellow), an 1841 poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow * ''Excelsior'' (Macedo ...

, and

to 81st Street in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. The trail uses a crushed limestone surface. It is connected to the Minnesota River Bluffs LRT trail via "The Artery" along 8th Avenue South in Hopkins, which opened in 2018. The trail is on a right-of-way originally built by the Minneapolis and St. Louis in the 1890s and abandoned by the Chicago and North Western in 1980 which branched off from the other rail line in Hopkins. There are about 471,000 people on the trail each year. Some places along the trail include Lake Minnetonka, restaurants in Hopkins and Excelsior, and historic places such as the Old Log Theatre and the Cottagewood General Store.

References

External links