St Louis is one of the leading cities to offer most efficient and award winning public transportation services such as Metrolink and Merobus for its residents and visitors. As a former St Louisian I have used both of these extensively and can tell you for sure that if you want to explore St Louis or you live or work here there is no better way to go around. Here is a little guide to St Louis public transportation for prospective travelers.
The MetroLink
It is St Louis's light rail system that features clean, fast and timely trains to all the major destinations around the city. With more than 30 stops and close to 50 miles of tracks, and 2 major routes the Red and Blue line, you can choose your destination and whether you want to ride the metro bus or metro link. It operates from 4AM to 12:30 AM. So be sure you are not waiting for a train after midnight.
Tickets for Metrolink
You can purchase your tickets at any automatic ticket vending machines or TVM's at any station. Frequent travelers may also purchase weekly or monthly passes at discounted rate online. Children under 5 ride for free. For kids above 5 and seniors tickets are about half price than the normal fare.
* You can buy a one ride ticket for $2.25, which gives you 2 hours of time to complete your trip.
* If you plan to visit more than one destination the best option is to buy a two hour pass for $2.75, which allows you to make as many trips as you wish to and from that destination and it also includes rides on the metro bus.
* However if you plan to spend whole day visiting multiple destinations, buy a whole day pass for $7.50 which is ideal for tourists, with it you can ride metro link and metro bus from anywhere and as many times as you like.
How to ride a MetroLink
* Before you board the train you might need to validate your ticket. For that you will need to find a validator machine which is conveniently located at all the stations. Insert the ticket into the slot and it will validate the ticket for you. Many of the tickets like the two hour passes purchased at TVM's are prevalidated.
* Make sure you keep your valid ticket handy at all times, the Fare Inspector may get on at any station and check tickets randomly. If your ticket is invalid or expired you might need to pay a fine and purchase a new ticket at the next station.
* All the trains have signs displaying their destination on their front and sides. Once you are onboard stops are announced few minutes before the train stops so you will be prepared to unboard.
The MetroBus
The Bi state bus system is managed by the same regional transit authority that runs the Metrolink and Metro Call a ride services. With more than 400 buses and 75 routes it connects most of the attractions around near St Louis and serves 3 major counties. The buses usually run from wee hour of early morning starting from 3.25 AM until the late night hour of 1:25 AM. But individual routes have different schedules so be sure to check the website or better yet the Bus Driver for actual times and stops for that particular bus.
Tickets for MetroBus
You can buy tickets to Metrobus at any of the ticket centers at Metrolink or Metrobus stations. Monthly passes or multiple pass booklets can also be bought online. You can also buy tickets for the ride when you get on the bus. It requires exact change so be sure to carry the amount needed.
* Adult fare is $2.00, seniors and children over 5 get fifty percent discount. Children under 5 ride free.
* Multi use transfer pass costs about $2.75 for adults and half that for seniors and kids. It allows you to ride as many times as you want within the 2 hour time frame.
* One Day pass costs $7.50 and lets you ride for a whole day for both the Metrolink and MetroBus multiple times.
How to ride MetroBus
* You can get on the desired Bus on any Bus stop along the route. If you already have a ticket or a pass the bus driver will validate it. Keep the ticket safe because the fare inspector can hop on any time to do random ticket checks.
* All the buses have their route number and destination name displayed above the front and back windows. Make sure you are getting on a right bus. If you are not sure where to get off or which bus to take, the Bus driver will help you.
The Metro Call a Ride service
The metro offers convenient curb to curb van service with advance reservations. Call ahead a day to reserve the ride. It costs anywhere from $4 to $7 depending upon which zone you are riding from. They may accept metrolink or metrobus passes as partial fare. For more info call (314) 231-2345
The Gateway Transportation center (GTC)
Recently St Louis took a big step towards becoming a new role model for cities around the country in terms of extensive public transportation which can compete with car travel. The Gateway Transportation Center opened in 2008 is conveniently located at the heart of downtown, and is the City's state-of-the-art multimodal transportation hub where Amtrak, Greyhound, Metro Link and Metro Bus service converge. You can choose from many local and out of state destinations and your mode of transport right here at this one big facility.
Here are the services offered by the GTC
- Short and Long term parking at very reasonable rates.
- Tickets and connections to all 4 transportation services to many local and out of state locations.
- WiFi and food courts.
- Metropolitan lounge for passengers taking an overnight break.
Public transportation is the convenient, inexpensive and environmentally friendly way of getting around in today's world. St Louis metro services provide an excellent and reliable way to travel around St Louis for its visitors. With programs like Park and ride or Bike and ride it is very convenient to park your vehicle at one of these stations and hop onto one of the trains or buses and get on with your business. All in all the metro services live up to their motto "Getting you there where you need to be" in a wonderful way.