In addition to regional and federal dollars, the Northstar Corridor Development Authority, with funds from Anoka, Hennepin and Sherburne counties, will contribute $10 million toward the $265-million, 40-mile project. The council fundss will help buy right-of-way within the metro area to connect the commuter rail line to the Hiawatha light-rail line. The Northstar Corridor Development Authority funds will help pay for design work.

Met Council officials say the $22.5 million will help keep the project on track, avoid a costly one-year delay and save up to $11 million in construction inflation costs. The Highway 10/Northstar Corridor is one of the most congested corridors in the state, as well as the fastest-growing corridor in Minnesota, says Peter Bell, chairman of the Met Council. Sherburne County alone expects a population increase of nearly 90% between 2000 and 2030.

The Northstar line is one of the proposed transitways in the council's long-range Transportation Policy Plan, which is currently being updated. Building the line is an important step, council officials say, toward developing a multi-modal transportation system that improves access and slows the growth in the region's congestion.