Author Archives: Melissa

About Melissa

I am interning at Metro this summer in the Communications Department, working on outreach. During the school year, I go to Washington University, where I am majoring in Environmental Studies and American Culture Studies and planning to graduate in the spring of 2010. I am really interested in urban, sustainability, and transit issues, especially when they all intersect, and I work with a bunch of environmental groups and initiatives, including Green Action at Wash U, Summer of Solutions, and the Sierra Student Coalition. I am originally from northeastern Vermont.

Introducing…The #8 Bates Macklind

Posted on July 31, 2009 by Melissa

Service restoration is approaching! We are getting excited about all of the new and restored routes that will start operating on the 3rd of August. To give you a little taste of what’s to come, we went out to investigate … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Metro dArt!

Posted on July 30, 2009 by Melissa

Two entries in dArt St. Louis feature MetroLink stations! dArt St. Louis is a super cool collaborative art project, where 100 St. Louisans threw darts at a giant map of the city and took photographs of the spots where they … Continue reading →

Posted in Transit Lifestyle, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

MetroLinks 07/29/09

Posted on July 29, 2009 by Melissa

There are always lots of interesting things happening on the internets relating to transit. Here’s a very small sample from the past couple days: Hurrah! The St. Louis Post-Dispatch published a lovely article in the paper today about Metro’s rehired … Continue reading →

Posted in Transit Elsewhere | Tagged | Comments Off

Bus Rapid Transit = Awesome

Posted on July 23, 2009 by Melissa

A New York Times article published a couple weeks ago has gotten people chatting about Bus Rapid Transit, or BRT. BRT consists of souped-up bus lines with some combination of larger buses (holding 60 people rather than 40), dedicated bus … Continue reading →

Posted in Alternative Transportation, Capital Projects | Tagged | 3 Comments

Meeting Tomorrow: Share Your Thoughts on Missouri’s Transportation Future!

Posted on July 15, 2009 by Melissa

Hear this, all ye transit-minded people in St. Louis: tomorrow evening the Missouri Transporation Alliance (MTA) is holding a public input forum on the future of the state’s transportation system. The meeting will take place from Thursday, July 16 from … Continue reading →

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‘A Good News Week’ For Metro

Posted on June 26, 2009 by Melissa

That’s what Ray Friem, our Chief Operations Officer of Transit Services, called it this morning at the Metro Board meeting. He was referring to news that GovernorNixon signed the state’s budget into law yesterday. In this budget is $12 million … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

How do MetroLink trains stop safely?

Posted on June 25, 2009 by Melissa

As you may have heard, on Monday night two D.C. area subway trains collided during rush hour. The accident occurred when one vehicle struck another vehicle, which was stopped on the tracks waiting for the passenger platform to clear at … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 10 Comments

Can Transit-Oriented Development help fix urban sprawl?

Posted on June 19, 2009 by Melissa

One of the toughest challenges facing public transit agencies is designing a system that works well in lower-density areas outside of traditional urban centers. Suburban and ex-urban sprawl pose a serious problem for alternative modes of transportation–for bikers, walkers, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Economic Development, Making Transit Easy, Transit Benefits, Transit Elsewhere, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

No car, no problems.

Posted on June 17, 2009 by Melissa

Big news: gas prices are up again, nearly a dollar from the low in December. But I have a confession to make–this news doesn’t bother me one bit. I don’t have a car, so gas prices just aren’t on my … Continue reading →

Posted in Transit Benefits, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 4 Comments

My Date With Justice

Posted on June 15, 2009 by Melissa

I have a confession to make: I am a delinquent. I used to be a juvenile, but I no longer have that excuse. About a month and a half ago, I was ticketed for riding the MetroLink with no fare, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 3 Comments