I am also quite optimistic about this project. An observation about the Hiawatha being so successful: Comparing Hiawatha to the light rail line here in Baltimore…well, there’s just no comparison. You have to climb up stairs to get on it, which makes it just seem like a big-ass bus. The rail vehicles themselves are not as attractive. Nobody put much thought into the stations, which are just slabs of concrete to stand on and sometimes a canopy. Its routing could have been much better. To transfer to the subway line it crosses, you have to get off the train, walk 200 feet to find the subway station, and then pay another fare for the subway.

I could go on…this obviously makes me cranky. Anyway, Hiawatha is much better-executed and a waaaay better experience.