Rail Loader Crew Works on the Southwest LRT Line in St. Louis Park

Crews working the Southwest LRT line in St. Louis Park use a rail loader car, a flatbed-mounted machine that threads long steel rails off a train and positions them along the roadbed for installation. The Southwest LRT, known operationally as the Green Line Extension, is a Metropolitan Council project extending light rail service roughly 14.5 miles from Minneapolis through St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Minnetonka, and Eden Prairie. The line runs largely along former freight corridors, requiring extensive new track construction rather than simple conversion of existing rail. Rail-loading equipment like this allows crews to deliver continuous welded rail sections directly to the grade, reducing the need for separate hauling and placement steps during construction.