Bi-State Development’s current plans for the north-south Green Line, the next MetroLink extension, do not extend light rail into the heart of the South Side here in Dutchtown. Dutchtown Main Streets has submitted a letter to Bi-State CEO Taulby Roach explaining why locating the southern terminus at the intersection of Chippewa, Jefferson, and Broadway is short-sighted.

You too can advocate for extending the MetroLink Green Line into Dutchtown by submitting feedback to Bi-State. While everyone will have their own reasons for wanting to see light rail come to Dutchtown, you can learn more about some of the factors that prompted Dutchtown Main Streets to request that Bi-State incorporate more community feedback into their plans for the Green Line.

Submit your feedback on the MetroLink Green Line

A MetroBus stop on Meramec Street in Dutchtown, St. Louis, MO.

Supply and Demand: Transit in Dutchtown

Nearly a third of households in eastern Dutchtown lack vehicles,1 making the area the most transit-dependent section of the South Side. However, most Dutchtown neighbors who use transit will tell you that service to the neighborhood lacks coverage, frequency, and reliability.

Metro has slashed bus service across the region in recent years, cutting lines and reducing frequency. Currently, four MetroBus lines serve Greater Dutchtown’s 26,000 residents: #8 Shaw-Cherokee, #11 Chippewa, #70 Grand, and #73 Carondelet. Aside from the Grand line, which is the busiest route in the Metro system, the length of time between buses ranges from 20–30 minutes during peak travel times and up to an hour at others—assuming no hiccups in service. Transit riders know that the limited service is not for lack of passengers—most of these buses are well used, with seats especially hard to find during rush hours.

Dutchtown transit riders would be delighted to see greater capacity—more routes, more frequently, and more reliably. Routes that take people to a greater variety of destinations like work, school, shopping, healthcare, and so on would see high ridership figures through Dutchtown. However, when service is curtailed and complicated to use, riders will either minimize their trips or scrimp and save to get their own wheels, a solution that begets a new set of challenges.

With an extended Green Line, transit accessibility in Dutchtown would increase exponentially. Quick, direct access to job centers near Downtown and at the new National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency in North St. Louis, along with a faster link to MetroLink’s Red Line and Blue Line, would open a broader range of employment and economic opportunities to Dutchtown residents by placing good jobs within a reasonable commute.

Economic Justice: Equitable Action for Dutchtown

A map of census tracts in Dutchtown, St. Louis, MO, with an overlay of tracts highlighted by the St. Louis Economic Justice Action Plan as the areas of highest need. The map includes an overlay of a proposed extension of the MetroLink Green Line into Dutchtown.
Areas shaded yellow are those indicated by the St. Louis Economic Justice Action Plan as the areas of greatest need. Click for a larger version.

Despite significant vacancy, Dutchtown is among the densest neighborhoods in St. Louis. We also have the highest concentration of households without a vehicle. Dutchtown has the highest concentration of immigrants and youth in St. Louis among our majority non-white population. And over half of Dutchtown households earn less than 60% of the area median income.2 Most families in Dutchtown are low-income and otherwise economically disadvantaged in a myriad of ways.

In recent years, the City of St. Louis has developed an Economic Justice Action Plan with stated goals of equitable and inclusive development, neighborhood transformation, and economic empowerment. To measure economic disparity and determine the areas of greatest need, planners created the Economic Justice Index (EJI). According to the Action Plan, most of Greater Dutchtown has scores of EJI-1 or EJI-2—scores indicating the highest need for resources and equitable economic action.

The City made clear in the Action Plan that Dutchtown should be a priority focus area of the St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC) to address economic needs and provide equitable opportunities for neighbors. The Action Plan states: “It is recommended that SLDC concentrate its efforts in EJI-1 and EJI-2, offering incentives, workforce development opportunities, and support for local organizations.” Our hope is that SLDC uses its platform to lobby Bi-State for further extension of the Green Line into Dutchtown.

Transit-Oriented Development: Opportunity in Dutchtown

Dutchtown Main Streets suggests extending the Green Line just a few blocks south with a terminus on South Broadway in the area between Gasconade and Osceola. Unfortunately, this stretch of Broadway has seen significant disinvestment in just the last few years. Most recently, Walgreens pharmacy closed this fall, removing a vital source of healthcare and household needs for neighbors—especially those without cars. Similarly impactful, the Family Dollar in the Chariton Square strip mall closed. Prior to that, the Universal Food Market shuttered. And during the pandemic, Hardee’s shut down, and soon after, the building was razed.

Vacant commercial spaces along South Broadway in Dutchtown, St. Louis, MO, including Walgreens, Family Dollar, Hardee's, and Universal Food Market.

While the losses of these businesses are no doubt harmful to Dutchtown in many regards, the state of these blocks of South Broadway leaves a nearly clean slate with lots of space for the development of both transit facilities and private projects. There is ample room to build train stations and a turnaround point for MetroLink cars to return north. Adding a park-and-ride lot or garage could further expand access to and ridership on the Green Line, giving residents further south in the City or South County the ability to drive partway to work, ballgames, or other activities without the concerns of parking in expensive lots and garages downtown.

Even more exciting is the potential for transit-oriented development. Walkable homes, shops, and other amenities could be within steps of a hub for light rail and buses. Walkability and access to transit are powerful forces for creating healthier lifestyles and reducing individuals’ carbon footprints. And with most of your needs covered within the distance of a short walk, train, or bus ride, the car-free lifestyle becomes a realistic possibility. Imagine the money you could save if you weren’t paying for a car and all of its related expenses!3

Four children and two adults at a mural painting event posing for a photo on a stoop on Meramec Street in Downtown Dutchtown, St. Louis, MO.

Building a Better Future: Dutchtown’s Next Generation

Dutchtown has the highest concentration of youth in St. Louis. Nearly a third of our neighbors are under 18 years old. Growing up on the South Side can be challenging. For a young person in Dutchtown, it does not appear that there is opportunity or hope around every corner. Decades of both private and public disinvestment, exposure to social challenges, and a lack of entertainment, employment, and educational resources nearby instill a sense of pessimism, especially for young people who haven’t scratched beneath the surface to see the potential in our neighborhood. Our average adolescent neighbor often doesn’t see a future for themselves in Dutchtown.

However, a key public investment in Dutchtown, such as the MetroLink Green Line, could drastically shift those perceptions. And with the potential to trigger further private investment in the area, Dutchtown’s kids could grow up in a more hopeful environment. Seeing new and renovated homes, new shops, more people, and more opportunities would present the neighborhood in a different light—a light that our young neighbors might want to follow and that would make them consider putting down their own roots in Dutchtown as adults.

Bi-State is still soliciting community feedback. Submit your comments on the Green Line website and make your voice heard. Let them know how impactful extending the MetroLink Green Line into Dutchtown could be for you as a Dutchtown neighbor, a local business owner, a transit rider, or a generally interested St. Louisan who wants to see meaningful investment where it can have the most significant impact.

Tell Bi-State to extend the MetroLink Green Line to Dutchtown

If you find yourself facing writer’s block, here are a few of the key points discussed above. Pick the ones that speak to you most.

Extending the MetroLink Green Line into Dutchtown would:

  • Reach one of the most densely populated areas of St. Louis.
  • Serve the most economically disadvantaged residents of South St. Louis.
  • Provide accessible transportation to an area where a third of households do not own a vehicle.
  • Connect residents to jobs, education, healthcare, and other amenities that are not available in the neighborhood.
  • Catalyze economic growth within the neighborhood through transit-oriented development and other public and private investments
  • Promote walkable neighborhoods, healthier lifestyles, lower environmental impact, and reduced dependency on automobiles.

Make it personal if you prefer. How does access to transit (or the lack thereof) affect your day-to-day life? Where would you go if you had fast, reliable transit available within walking distance?

Extending the MetroLink Green Line into Dutchtown would:

  • Allow me to broaden my horizons when looking for better job opportunities.
  • Make it easier for me and my family to get to our doctor appointments.
  • Attract new customers to my business.
  • Let me get rid of my car and start saving to purchase my own home.
  • Shave time off of my commute and allow me to sleep a little later, eat a healthy breakfast, or just relax a bit before heading to work.
  • Give me another great reason to stay in Dutchtown.

We’d love to hear your reasons why Dutchtown needs the Green Line and better access to transit in general. Feel free to drop us a line and share your thoughts.

  1.  American Community Survey 5-Year, 2018–2022. ↩︎
  2. The area median income, or AMI, is a figure calculated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development to determine the midpoint of incomes across a metropolitan area. In St. Louis, the AMI for a family of four is $101,200 as of 2024. Households earning less than 80% of AMI are considered low income, and those earning less than 50% of AMI are rated very low income. A majority of households in the Greater Dutchtown area earn less than 60% of AMI. The median household income in Dutchtown is roughly half of the median household income for the City as a whole. ↩︎
  3. According to Insurance.com, the average cost of owning a vehicle over a five-year period in Missouri is over $26,000, which works out to nearly $450 a month. This figure includes sales tax, registration, insurance, gas, maintenance, and repairs—but doesn’t include a car payment. ↩︎