Greetings,

The Northstar Commuter Rail Project and Metro Transit are pleased to announce an exciting opportunity - a chance to be one of the first Minnesotans to ride the Northstar Line.

On Saturday, Nov. 14, public events will be held at each Northstar station from Big Lake to downtown Minneapolis to mark Northstar's grand opening. Each event will include a program, transit information, family-friendly activities and a chance to ride a Northstar train at the suburban stations. However, space is limited on the first trains.

Enter your name in a drawing for a chance to receive advanced tickets for Northstar's grand opening rides at suburban stations on Nov. 14. Please provide your contact information, the number of tickets requested (up to 4 per household) and your preferred station location. More than 350 tickets will be distributed for each suburban station to those who enter.

Ticket recipients will be randomly selected during the week of Oct. 12 and notified by email or phone with instructions on how to claim their tickets. A limited number of tickets also will be distributed Nov. 14 at the suburban stations.

Tickets will be required to ride the free grand opening trains, which will travel non-stop from the suburban stations directly to downtown Minneapolis, where riders can see the Target Field Station and connection to the Hiawatha Light Rail Transit Line. The trains will return to their home stations a short time later.

No train rides will be available in Minneapolis on Nov. 14. However, people who visit the Target Field Station will have an opportunity to tour a Northstar train and receive a free ride coupon good for Northstar travel at a future specified date.

As we prepare for the beginning of regular Northstar Commuter Rail service on the following Monday morning, we hope you'll mark your calendars to join us for the Nov. 14 grand opening events.

Don't waste another minute, sign up today to try to secure one of the first rides on Northstar.

Sincerely,

Dan Erhart
NCDA Chair