Twin Cities Streets for People

by Amber Collett, Bike Walk Twin Cities

It’s no secret that folks like to bike in the Twin Cities. Every year the cycling community grows –and I’m sure this year will be no exception (stay tuned for the 2011 Count Report release scheduled for Dec. 16th!) With supportive city leadership, committed advocacy organizations, and a set of dedicated funds made available through the nonmotorized transportation pilot program (called Bike Walk Twin Cities), Minneapolis has earned it’s spot as the number one city for bicycling in the nation

As I look back on the year, I can’t help but focus on the huge stride forward our city made in building out our cycling infrastructure. More than 75 miles of on-street bike lanes have been added to our network since the start of the Bike Walk Twin Cities program–this is great news!

Here is a little bit more about some of the most innovative projects that hit the pavement this year: Read more >

Minneapolis is certainly moving full speed ahead in its support for cycling. NiceRide is expanding its stations; the city is considering hiring a full-time cycling & pedestrian coordinator; bike lanes are freshly restriped in bright green (at least in Dinkytown, anyway); and last year Minneapolis surpassed Portland as the nation’s #1 biking city. As an urban enthusiast, ardent supporter of Minneapolis’ pro-cycling efforts, and downtown resident, I should be excited to be biking every day in my city. But I’m not! I walk, or drive, for all my trips. But I don’t bike.
 
Why, you ask?
 
I am afraid of being hit by cars, that’s why!
 
 
Despite all the efforts to increase awareness of bikers, and despite all the prominent restriping of bike lanes, the fact is that cars can still quite easily strike, injure, and kill cyclists. I have no intention of being one of them (the injured cyclists, that is).

I found myself ruminating on this on a recent trip to Paris. In that city--and in Montreal, as well (apparently Francophones really like bikes)--most of the bike lanes are grade-separated. There is a large curb, about 8 inches high and 18 inches wide, marked with regular 3 foot tall posts, that separates the car lanes from the bike lanes (look at a Google StreetView of Rue Cherrier, Montreal for a good example). This configuration is marvelous for promoting biking. Bikers can freely move down the road, confident that cars will not casually destroy their undercarriages by sweeping into the bike lane.

The effect was particularly pronounced when I looked at two portions of the same street in Montreal. On one side, the bike lane was grade-separated. On the other, it was not. On the grade-separated side, a fair number of bikers were happily cruising down their lane. On the non-grade-separated side, not a single biker was present. This was probably because a large number of cars had parked in the bike lane. This included, frustratingly, a cop car. Even the cops park in the bike lanes!

The only way to truly get cars to respect bikes is to make it impossible, or at least sufficiently damage-inducing, to cross into bike lanes. The Netherlands has taken this truly to heart, and even has bike-specific traffic lights for its bike lanes. Ridership in that country is astonishingly high.

Grade-separated bike lanes also prevent cars from using the shoulder to quickly make right turns, another harrowing event for cyclists. Right hooks, as they’re called, have an insidious way of making bikers’ lives unpleasant. If the configuration of the road prevents this, the road becomes safer for everyone.

Minneapolis is on a decent path, but there’s a ways to go. If--and hopefully when--the city finally understands the bikers deserve a protected lane, I’ll be happy to join in the fray.

  Read more >

From MPR:

About a month ago, Hennepin and First Avenues were converted from one-way, to two-way streets. The city made the switch on a weekend morning in order to minimize problems. City officials say so far the conversion has gone well, with a few exceptions.

"At first the cars were all parked, basically in the bike lanes," said Sophie St. Jacques on her bicycle as she prepared to continue north down First Avenue.

Have these changes made things better for cars, pedestrians, and cyclists? You can listen or read the story here. Read more >

A few weeks ago, Lisa brought up a point about the city's new Central Avenue bike plan. The plan looks great for the northern part of the street, from Spring Street north all the way up Central Avenue.

But at the most important part of the plan, the stretch through the busy, dense, and commercial district around Hennepin and University Avenues, the city is proposing a "shared bike and through lane" that would be even less safe than the current awkward arrangement on Hennepin Avenue. 

What do you think should happen here? I've one suggestion after the jump. Read more >