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Red Line (St. Louis MetroLink)

The Red Line is the older and longer line of the MetroLink light rail system in Greater St. Louis. It serves 29 stations across three counties and two states.

For other routes of the same name, see Red Line.

Red Line

Operational

29
(1 under construction)

July 31, 1993 (1993-07-31)

Lambert Airport Branch

38 mi (61 km)

Elevated, subway, at-grade

4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

Public artwork[edit]

In the initial design phase of MetroLink, Metro's Arts in Transit program commissioned a group of artists to design unique bridge piers for MetroLink viaducts. Collaborating with architects and engineers, the artists designed the arched supports that reflect an inverted version of the arch motif used throughout the MetroLink system. The bridge pier style is a signature of MetroLink design and appears in the subsequent St. Clair and Cross County extensions.[22]


In 2008, the Arts in Transit program commissioned a work for the alignment along Interstate 70 near Lambert Airport. Titled St. Louis Rhythm and created by Richard Elliot, it was made using roadway reflectors on 16 concrete Jersey barriers that are activated by the headlights of passing cars.[23]


In 2011, another Arts in Transit commission was installed on the shared alignment near Interstate 64 on the bridge over Vandeventer Avenue. Titled Blue Train and created by Clark Wiegman, a cubist locomotive represents the opening eight bars of the melody of “St. Louis Blues.” During the day, this piece appears as a locomotive spewing a trail of notes or an unfurling piano roll. At night, it becomes a geometric abstraction about linear dynamism and the implied form of the bridge punching through the surrounding ambient light.[24]

Projects in progress[edit]

MidAmerica Airport extension[edit]

In 2019, the St. Clair County Transit District was awarded $96 million in Illinois infrastructure funding to build a 5.2-mile (8.4 km) extension of the Red Line from Shiloh-Scott to MidAmerica St. Louis Airport in Mascoutah.[25] This extension will include two 2.6-mile (4.2 km) segments, a double-track and a single-track segment, along with a station at the airport.[26] Construction on the extension began in 2023 with Metro expecting to begin operations in early 2026.[27][28][29]

System rehabilitation[edit]

In 2023, Metro began a system-wide rehabilitation program that will last up to two years.[30] Work on the Red Line will include the rehabilitation of the Union Station and downtown subway tunnels, including the Laclede's Landing, Convention Center and 8th & Pine subway stations.[31] Elsewhere, curve tracks, catenary wire, system conduit, staircases and retaining walls are to be upgraded or replaced.[32] Three stations are to receive platform rehabilitations: Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center, Rock Road and Wellston.[32]


In 2024, Metro expects to complete upgrades to the Supervisory Control Automated Data Acquisition (SCADA) and Public Address/Customer Information (PA/CIS) systems. The upgraded SCADA/PA/CIS will operate as an integrated system that monitors and controls operations and will allow Metro to provide real-time arrival information to passengers, such as live displays at stations.[33]

– Official website for Metro Transit

Metro

– Official website for Bi-State Development

Bi-State Development

– Official website for the St. Clair County Transit District

St. Clair County Transit District

– St. Louis transit advocacy group

Citizens for Modern Transit

Arts in Transit Website