Extra Northstar Trains Running from Fridley for Holidazzle Parades

Passenger rail connections added for five Saturdays to and from Fridley Station. You can buy an $11 family pass online.

Ride the rails direct from Fridley to the Holidazzle parade in downtown Minneapolis this holiday season. The Target Holidazzle Parade is free. It starts at 6:30 p.m. every Thursday through Sunday from Nov. 23–Dec. 23, 2012. The parade route is along the Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis from 12th Street to Fourth Street. The special Northstar Commuter Rail trains to and from the Holidazzle parade on four Saturdays only: Nov. 24, Dec. 1, Dec. 8, Dec. 15 and Dec. 22, 2012. The train leaves from Fridley Station at 3:39 p.m. The return train leaves Target Field Station at 8 p.m. Holidazzle Family Passes for a round trip on the Northstar train from Fridley Station to downtown Minneapolis are available online. They cost $11 for two adults …

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Metro Transit Ridership on Bus Routes, Trains Serving Fridley Tops 4M

Fridley trips on Northstar totaled 28,275 for the year.

People took more than four million rides in 2011 on bus routes and the Northstar commuter rail line that serve Fridley, according to Metro Transit. Overall Northstar ridership last year was down by 1 percent from 2010—primarily due to the freight-train derailment in Fridley that caused the line to in July 2011, the transit agency said in a press release. Total ridership—including the Hiawatha Light Rail line—topped 80 million rides for only the second time in 30 years, General Manager Brian Lamb said, for a 3.5 percent increase over 2010. Here are the 2011 ridership figures for bus routes serving Fridley and the Northstar: 2011 Ridership for MetroTransit Bus Routes Serving Fridley *MetroTransit doesn't operate Route 801 and has yet to …

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Fridley on YouTube: Riding the Northstar from Target Field to Fridley

Take a virtual 12-minute trip via video.

The Northstar Commuter Rail line continues to be a popular subject on YouTube. Here's a video that captures the full 12-minute ride from downtown Minneapolis to Fridley Station.

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Quick Video: Northstar Train Breezes Past a Freight Train in Fridley

Tortoise and the Hare: commuter train blows by a BNSF freight engine.

Both trains were traveling north at Osborne Road NE in Fridley on Nov. 30, 2011. Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad replaced the tracks in the area on July 12, 2011. . A train derailment took place at a bridge just south of this site on July 16, 2011.

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Northstar to Reach Ramsey ... and Beyond?

The city of Ramsey is the next stop for the Northstar Commuter Rail line.

Fridley Saw 9 Percent of Northstar Rides in Last 3 Months

Twins fans help but July freight-train derailment didn't.

People riding to and from Fridley Station accounted for 9 percent of all trips on Northstar Commuter Rail line in the third quarter of 2011. That's in line with past figures showing a bigger share for Fridley during the Minnesota Twins baseball season from April to October. Fridley Station was the beginning or end for 18,335 trips people took in July, August and September, according to Metro Transit spokesman John Siqveland. The total number of Northstar rides for the period was 204,306. But overall Northstar ridership figures were hurt when the July 16 freight-train derailment in Fridley caused Northstar to shut down service for three and a half days—including cancellation of four trains for Minnesota Twins games. Another third-quarter …

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Andover Train-Car Crash: 2nd Search Night for Fridley K9

On Monday, K9 Kona was key in police pursuit in Columbia Heights. Kona returned to action Tuesday night to search for the victim of a train-car crash in Andover.

Updated below. Fridley Police K9 teams may see a second night of search duty Tuesday, as authorities assembled resources in Andover to search for the victim of a train-car crash on the Burlington-Northern Santa Fe railroad tracks. According to the Anoka County emergency scanner, the victim in the crash lives nearby and may have tried to walk home. Searchers divided the area into quadrants and were seeking a fourth police dog to help. Fridley had a dog available, according to the dispatch radio. The crash site is about 14 miles north of Fridley. On Monday night, Fridley police dog Kona was a hero in apprehending a suspect with an outstanding warrant, according to Fridley Lt. Mike Monsrud and a KSTP report. Update (1 a.m. Wednesday): Twin …

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Train Derailment Cleanup Dragging

City says progress slow where BNSF train left the tracks at Locke Lake.

Train Derailment Site Draws Explorers Despite Being Off-limits

The Fridley train derailment site is closed, yet some go past barriers to explore the site and use the trail.

The site of the July 16 Fridley train derailment is undergoing continued clean-up efforts even though passenger and freight rail traffic has resumed—and some people have explored the area even though it is still off-limits to the public.  Several freight cars of corn remain at the site, and the Mississippi River Regional Trail, which crosses under the tracks at the site of the derailment, is still closed to bicyclists and hikers. The derailment of a BNSF freight train disrupted rail traffic for three days as corn from 17 cars derailed freight cars and diesel fuel from derailed engines spilled into Rice Creek and Locke Lake.  Blamed for the derailment are the heavy rains over the days leading up to the derailment. According to Burlington …

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Amy Paddock

9:39 am on Tuesday, August 2, 2011

This is nice! =)   more ›

Federal Investigation of Fridley Train Derailment Could Take Nine Months

Deadline for Federal Railway Administration is 270 days.

If you're wondering exactly how and why the train derailed July 16 in Fridley, be prepared to wait. The Federal Railroad Administration's investigation may take as long as 270 days, according to spokesman Robert Kulat: As per our policy, no details will be available until the investigation report is complete, which can take up to nine months. That means we may not know what really happened, at least in the judgement of the federal government, until April 11, 2012. Read this PDF for more from the FRA about the agency's investigations.

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