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MetroLink is a light rail transit system serving the Greater St. Louis area in the United States. The system is operated by the Bi-State Development Agency, which since 2003 has done business as Metro. With an average weekday ridership of 56,900 in 2014, MetroLink is the twelfth-busiest light rail system in the United States.
The system currently has 37 stations; 13 stations are served only by the Red Line, 9 stations only by the Blue Line, and 15 stations by both lines. Twelve stations are located in St. Louis, Missouri, 14 in St. Louis County, Missouri, and 11 in St. Clair County, Illinois. Central West End station is the busiest station by daily ridership, while Sunnen station is the least busy.
MetroLink began service on July 31, 1993, with the opening of the Red Line segment from North Hanley station to 5th & Missouri station. An infill station at East Riverfront station and an extension to Lambert–St. Louis International Airport opened in 1994, followed by a second station at the airport in 1998. Since then, the system has had two major expansions. The first expansion, known as the St. Clair County Extension, was completed on May 5, 2001, with the extension of the Red Line to Belleville, Illinois and two years later to Scott Air Force Base. The second major expansion, known as the Cross County Extension, was completed on August 26, 2006, with the addition of the Blue Line branch from the Forest Park–DeBaliviere station to the Shrewsbury–Lansdowne I-44 station via Clayton, Missouri.