MetroLink (commonly referred to as "Metro") is the light rail system that serves the Greater St. Louis area. It is operated by Metro Transit in a shared fare system with MetroBus. Currently, it is a two-line, 46 mile (74 km) system serving 38 stations operating primarily on separate grade with subway sections in downtown St. Louis and near Forest Park and Washington University in St. Louis.
Unlike the majority of LRT systems in the United States, St. Louis MetroLink shares more characteristics of a rapid transit service, including a largely independent right-of-way, a higher top speed, and level boarding at all platforms. In , the system had an annual ridership of .
History
Construction on the initial MetroLink line from St. Louis Lambert International Airport to the 5th & Missouri station in East St. Louis began in 1990. The first segment opened on July 31, 1993, with 16 stations between North Hanley and 5th & Missouri. The extension to Lambert Airport Main opened on June 25, 1994. Three infill stations have since been added to this alignment: East Riverfront in 1994, Lambert Airport East in 1998, and Cortex in 2018.
About of the original alignment reused existing railroad right-of-way including historic downtown tunnels. The capital cost to build the initial phase of MetroLink was $465 million, including $348 million from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA).
Construction on the St. Clair County MetroLink extension from the 5th & Missouri station to the College station in Belleville began in 1998 and opened in May 2001. The extension added eight stations and seven park-ride lots. The total project cost was $339.2 million with $243.9 million paid by the FTA and $95.2 million paid by the St. Clair County Transit District (via a 1/2 cent sales tax passed in November 1993).
In May 2003, a extension from the college station to the Shiloh-Scott station opened. This $75 million project was funded by a $60 million grant from the Illinois FIRST (Fund for Infrastructure, Roads, Schools, and Transit) Program and $15 million from the St. Clair County Transit District.
The Cross County Extension opened on August 26, 2006, and added nine stations from Forest Park-DeBaliviere to Shrewsbury, Missouri. Intermediate stops include service to Washington University, Clayton, the Saint Louis Galleria and Maplewood. The entire project was funded by a $430 million Metro bond issue. Citing repeated delays and cost overruns, Metro fired and then sued its general contractor, Cross County Collaborative, in the summer of 2004. Metro sought $81 million in damages for fraud and mismanagement while the Collaborative counter-sued for $17 million for work that Metro hadn't paid for. On December 1, 2007, a jury awarded the Collaborative $2.56 million.On October 27, 2008, Metro renamed the Lambert Airport branch the Red Line and the Shrewsbury branch the Blue Line. Blue Line service was also extended from its former terminus at Emerson Park to Fairview Heights. All trains have signs on the front and side that identify the train as a Red or Blue line train, and operators make live announcements identifying lines and stations.
On September 9, 2014, the United States Department of Transportation announced $10.3 million in funding for a new Metrolink station between the Central West End and Grand stations in the Cortex Innovation Community. An additional $5 million in funding was provided by a public-private partnership including Washington University, BJC HealthCare, Great Rivers Greenway and Cortex. The new Cortex station, located just east of Boyle Avenue, opened to the public on July 31, 2018.
On June 15, 2019, MetroLink set its single-day ridership record when more than 100,000 people used the service to attend the parade after the St. Louis Blues won the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs.
On July 26, 2022, a flash flood shut down MetroLink for nearly 72 hours and caused roughly $40 million in damage. The flood damaged nearly of track bed, two elevators, two communications rooms, three signal houses and destroyed two MetroLink vehicles. Normal Red Line service resumed in September, but Blue Line service would run under restrictions for nearly two years. On July 31, 2023, Metro received $27.7 million in federal emergency disaster relief funding to help cover the cost of restoration. In March 2024, Blue Line platform and speed restrictions were lifted after repairs on the last signal house were completed.
In May, Metro received a $196.2 million federal grant to purchase new light rail vehicles to replace the remaining SD-400 cars. Six months later, Bi-State's board approved a contract with Siemens Mobility worth up to $390.4 million for as many as 55 new S200 light rail vehicles with delivery expected to begin in 2027.
In September 2024, turnstiles began initial operation at four Illinois stations as part of Metro's Secure Platform Plan. Seven Missouri stations are slated for completion by early 2025 with the remaining stations and an upgraded fare collection system expected to be in place by early 2026.
Chronology Opening dates of MetroLink segments and stations:
Opening date Element Stations Length Line between North Hanley and 5th & Missouri 16 East Riverfront (infill station) 1 — Extension to Lambert Airport Main 1 Lambert Airport East (infill station) 1 — Extension to College 8 Extension to Shiloh-Scott 1 Extension to Shrewsbury-Lansdowne I-44 9 Cortex (infill station) 1 — Total 38
Lines Red Line
The 38-mile (61 km) Red Line begins at St. Louis Lambert International Airport, making stops at the Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 stations. It proceeds through Kinloch, then stops at the North Hanley station near Bel-Ridge. It makes two stops (UMSL North & UMSL South) at the University of Missouri St. Louis in Normandy. After UMSL, trains run on the old Wabash/Norfolk & Western Railroad's Union Depot line that once brought passenger trains from Ferguson to Union Station. Traveling into Pagedale, it stops at the Rock Road station and then at Wellston's namesake station on Plymouth Street. Entering St. Louis City at Skinker Boulevard, the line stops at the Delmar Loop station and its namesake entertainment district. At the following station, Forest Park-DeBaliviere, the Red Line meets the Blue Line; the lines then share tracks until the Blue Line terminates at the Fairview Heights station in Illinois.
Blue Line
The Blue Line alignment starts at the Shrewsbury-Lansdowne I-44 station in Shrewsbury, just west of the River des Peres. It crosses over Interstate 44 and continues north to two stations in Maplewood, Missouri (Sunnen and Maplewood/Manchester). The line continues north to the Brentwood I-64 station in Brentwood, Missouri, just south of Interstate 64. It then proceeds in a tunnel underneath Interstate 64, continuing to the Richmond Heights station, which serves the Saint Louis Galleria shopping mall. The line then proceeds through a sharp turn east to the Clayton station in the median of Forest Park Parkway in Clayton, Missouri, where it serves the Central Business District of St. Louis County. It heads east to the Forsyth station where it enters a tunnel to the University City-Big Bend subway station. After crossing the St. Louis City/County boundary, the Blue Line stops at the Skinker subway station, the last stop serving nearby Washington University. At the following station, Forest Park-DeBaliviere, the Blue Line meets the Red Line. From this station, the two services share track until the Blue Line terminates at the Fairview Heights station in Illinois.
Shared alignment In all, the Red and Blue lines share tracks for 16 stations. From west to east: the Central West End and Cortex stations that serve the Central West End neighborhood, Washington University Medical Center, and Cortex Innovation Community. The Grand station transfers with the busy #70 MetroBus line and serves Saint Louis University and its hospital. Next, the Union Station, Civic Center, Stadium, 8th & Pine, Convention Center, and Laclede's Landing stations serve downtown St. Louis and its many destinations. Crossing the historic Eads Bridge into Illinois, the line serves the East Riverfront, 5th & Missouri, Emerson Park, Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center, and Washington Park stations in East St. Louis, Illinois. At the next station, Fairview Heights, the Blue Line ends. The Red Line continues south through Belleville, Illinois, to its terminus at the Shiloh–Scott station near Scott Air Force Base.
Rolling stock
MetroLink operates 87 Siemens SD-400 and SD-460 light rail vehicles (LRVs). Each , single articulated vehicle has four high-platform doors per side and can hold 72 seated and 106 standing passengers. The cars are powered by an electric motor which gets its electricity from an overhead line with a supply.
Each car is bi-directional (also known as "double-ended"), meaning it has an enclosed operator cab at each end. This configuration is the most flexible for operations but prevents travel between cars. Bicycles are permitted in the door vestibules adjacent to each unused cab. Each car has separate doors for boarding at station level and track level; in normal operations, the track-level doors (equipped with stairs) are unused.
A new paint scheme of blue and black was adopted in 2019, and repainting or wrapping of the entire active fleet in the new colors was completed in August 2025. All LRVs were originally equipped with rollsignsroll-type destination signs in which the background color (blue or red) indicated the route, but all of the SD-460 cars were converted to LED-type destination signs between October 2021 and July 2023, leaving only the 18 remaining SD-400 cars with rollsigns.
By 2025, 13 of the SD-400 cars had been retired. Metro plans to begin phasing out the remaining 18 SD-400 cars and to refurbish the SD-460 cars for continued use. In May 2023, Metro received a $196.2 million federal grant to purchase up to 48 Siemens S200 high-floor light rail vehicles to replace 25 of the oldest cars. Six months later, Bi-State's board approved a contract with Siemens Mobility worth up to $390.4 million for as many as 55 new light rail vehicles. The initial order, awarded in November 2023, was for 24 LRVs; by 2025, it had been increased to the full 55 vehicles. The first car is expected to arrive in early 2027.
Metro operates two storage and maintenance facilities. Ewing Yard sits between the Grand and Union Station stops just west of downtown St. Louis; 29th Street Yard is located between the JJK Center and Washington Park stops in East St. Louis.
Roster Unit TypeYear builtQuantityImageNumbers Siemens SD-400 1991–1993 31Equipment Railway Age January 1990 page 8 1001–1031 Siemens SD-460 1999 10 2001–2010 2000 24 3001–3024 2004–2005 22 4001–4022Siemens S200 Deliveries to begin in 2027 55 (5001–5055)
Fares
MetroLink uses turnstile gates with fare validators to limit access to the paid area of stations to passengers with tickets and other forms of payment. The gates were installed in the 2020s to replace the previous proof-of-payment system. Tickets can be purchased at ticket-vending machines at the entrance to all stations and must be validated before boarding the train. Single-ride tickets are good for up to two hours in the direction that a passenger initially boards. Some fares, such as monthly or weekly fares, do not need to be validated, but passengers must have the pass in their possession while riding and must show the pass to security personnel upon request. Reduced fares can be purchased by seniors ages 65+, people with disabilities, and children ages 5–12. Up to three children under 5 may ride free with a fare-paying rider. Proof of age may be requested of all people riding with reduced fares. Other types of passes include a Semester Pass for full-time students.