Riders wait to board a SouthWest Transit shuttle on the new Eden Prairie to MSP Airport route. Photo by Gillian Holte
SouthWest Transit kicked off the first day of service of its new bus route from Eden Prairie to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on Monday, March 31. Two area youth who designed bus wraps for the route’s vehicles were recognized during a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Eden Prairie’s Brandon Peña-Stack, left, and Chaska’s Ben Lenius, right, are shown next to SouthWest Transit buses wrapped in the designs they created.
Brandon Peña-Stack of Eden Prairie and Ben Lenius of Chaska were the contest winners in SouthWest Transit’s design contest for the bus wraps, advertisements that cover the entire vehicle. Peña-Stack’s design, influenced by the Minnesota state flag, won in the 11-14 age division. Lenius’s design featuring the state bee, the rusty patched bumble bee, was the winner in the 15-18 age group. The contest was open to youth who live in or attend school in SouthWest Transit’s service area – Eden Prairie, Chanhassen, Chaska, Carver, or Victoria.
Brandon Peña-Stack and Ben Lenius cut the ribbon for the new Route 686 airport shuttle buses featuring their designs during the March 31 unveiling at SouthWest Station.
The new bus route, the 686, offers both express and local service between Eden Prairie’s SouthWest Station and MSP Airport. The express, the 686X, makes stops at SouthWest Station, Mall of America, and MSP seven days a week, running between 5 a.m. and 11 p.m. on weekdays and 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekends. The local, the 686L, makes additional stops along the Interstate 494 corridor and runs between 5 a.m. and 7 p.m. on weekdays.
The 686 route will replace SouthWest Transit’s on-demand SW Prime Airport service. SW Prime Airport will continue to operate until April 26.