St Louis MetroLink light rail opens 192 million dollar airport extension

Construction has finished on a 192 million dollar extension of the MetroLink light rail system to MidAmerica St Louis Airport in Illinois. RailTech, IndexBox, and RiverBender.com all report that the new 8.4 kilometre track runs from the Shiloh-Scott Transit Center to the airport. Officials gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new station on October 5. [1][3][4]

The project is the first full expansion of the St Louis light rail network in two decades, according to RailTech. MetroLink is operated by Metro Transit and uses a shared fare system alongside the MetroBus network. [1][5]

MidAmerica St Louis Airport operates as a joint-use facility situated next to Scott Air Force Base in St Clair County, Illinois. The facility opened in 1997 and serves as the secondary domestic passenger airport for the metropolitan area behind St Louis Lambert International Airport. Allegiant Air is currently the sole scheduled commercial airline operating out of the terminal. [6]

The light rail system now offers direct transit connections to air passengers traveling through the Illinois facility. Before the addition of the new route, MetroLink operated a 46 mile system serving 38 stations across the region. [1][5]