MN HF1609

Requires the Metropolitan Council to establish identical bus shelter policies for urban and suburban areas, ensuring equal treatment in basic corner shelter deployment.

Mandates that the Council's bus assignment policies provide all transit routes with equal access to newer buses featuring customer-friendly designs.

Establishes three transit route quality tiers (low, medium, high) based on service levels, amenities, and operating costs, with fares set proportionally to each tier's total per-ride costs.

Requires fare decreases to be implemented by January 1, 2014, with fare increases phased in over three years beginning January 1, 2014, using a cost calculation that includes capital costs amortized over 30 years.

Implementation costs are to be paid from the Council's existing transit planning and operating budget.