MVTA Commemorates Opening of Hiawatha Line with Buses Wrapped as Original Train
6/3/2004 3:00 PMThe MVTA will also connect with the light-rail line at the Fort Snelling and 46th St. Stations, with Route 471 operating between Eagan and the 46th St. Station. Riders can connect to light-rail at either of these stations to continue to downtown Minneapolis or other locations. When the line is completed to the Mall of America (MOA), many of MVTAs local routes will connect with the Hiawatha Line at the MOA.
"We wanted to do something special to commemorate the opening of the light-rail line," said MVTA Board Chair Meg Tilley. "We knew we would operate service that would accommodate riders transferring between our buses and the rail system," she said, "but we wanted to do something striking to mark the occasion."
The MVTA worked closely with the Milwaukee Road Historical Association (MRHA) in designing the wrapped bus, which was completed by American Lasercut Grafix of St. Paul. Extensive time was spent detailing the wheels of the rail cars for the bus wrap. The book, The Story of the Hiawatha by Charles H. Bilty was useful in viewing colors and designs for the bus.
The original Hiawatha train was created to travel between Chicago and St. Paul in rapid time, to beat the competition from Burlingtons Zephyr and the Chicago Northwestern 400. Put in service in May 1935, the name of the train was selected to reflect the route of the train, as it traveled through many towns named in Longfellow's poem, The Song of Hiawatha. The name was also selected to represent speed, based on Longfellows comments about Hiawatha:
Swift of Foot was Hiawatha,
He could shoot an arrow from him,
And run forward with such fleetness,
That the arrow fell behind him!
"The (wrapped) bus looks awesome!" said Bob Storozuk, president of the Milwaukee Road Historical Association. The MRHA is hoping to have one or more of the buses available for viewing at its annual conference, June 17-20 at the old Milwaukee Road Depot in Minneapolis. The Milwaukee Road was founded in 1849. The Soo Line acquired the Milwaukee Road in 1985; in 1990, the Soo Line became a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian Pacific Railway (CP).
The vinyl wrap affixed to the two MCI coach-style buses is expected to last for about one year. The MVTA operates a fleet of some 106 buses of varying sizes and manufacturers. The MVTA is the public transportation provider for the businesses and residents of Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Rosemount and Savage.
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