Spring Street in downtown Los Angeles (California) is a charming stretch of well-kept buildings; it served as the original financial center of the city, hence termed the “Wall Street of the West.” The nearby Hollywood film industry relies on Spring Street as a perfect background for photoshoots; it’s a good “stand-in for Anytown, USA.[1]” But […]
Assuming cyclists have “safety in numbers,” the real question I posed in my last post is how can St. Paul or Minneapolis (or Anyplace, Minnesota) get more people on bikes? The best way spur cycling is to make cycling appear safer. This recipe has many ingredients, but the most critical is giving users what they […]
When it comes to cycling, is there safety in numbers? Maybe, but we shouldn’t let our local governments rely on that as an easy out from creating safe spaces to cycle.
The characteristics of a city’s off-street cycling network vary widely by culture. Expectations are adjusted accordingly. The most progressive cycling communities in the U.S. have set high standards for what they consider to be suitable bicycle facilities. Many towns avoid paths that track along sharp turns (i.e., 90 angles), swerve around trees, mix with transit […]
This is a subsequent post (part 2 of 3) focusing on characteristics and perspectives of off-street facilities. Some attention to my previous post seemed to stem from the incredulity of implying anything negative about the Midtown Greenway—one of America’s most beloved darlings of a bike path[1]. At the risk of appearing to cave, I agree […]
In less than a decade, the Minneapolis Midtown Greenway (Minnesota) has quickly risen to one of America’s most beloved darlings of a bike path[1]. Similarly, the short stretch of the Cedar Lake Trail to the Twins Stadium provides much needed closure over an important stretch for cyclists in downtown Minneapolis. Both are critical assets for […]