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The Trailhead at Theodore Wirth Park Has an Access and Sustainability Problem

By on January 9, 2020 in Accessibility, Parks

Theodore Wirth Park, the largest park managed by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, is home to what MPRB superintendent Mary Merrill has described as a world class facility that serves as the jumping off point for year-round outdoor activities. However, these activities – which include snow tubing, cross country skiing, mountain and fat tire […]

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Lake Street and Excelsior Boulevard Intersection: A Pedestrian’s View, Part 1

By on November 11, 2019 in Accessibility, Pedestrians, Photos, Roads, Sidewalks, Traffic, Walking

The intersection of Lake Street and Excelsior Boulevard at the western edge of Minneapolis, one of the busiest in the entire metro area, is an access point for both city commuters and residents of the West Calhoun and Cedar-Isles-Dean neighborhood, of whom I am one. According to Hennepin County data, over 36,000 vehicles pass through […]

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Minnesota River Bridge: an E for Effort

By on September 30, 2019 in Accessibility, Bicycling, Bridges, commute, Freeways, Infrastructure, Pedestrians, Rivers, Suburbia, Trails, Walking

The new I-35W Minnesota River Bridge will include a “pedestrian trail” to accommodate walkers and bikers across the Minnesota River. This is great news for folks commuting across the Minnesota River, as the nearest year-round crossing of the river is seven miles downstream at I-494.  There’s a catch, though. The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) […]

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12 Ideas to Improve Downtown Mobility

By on August 14, 2019 in Accessibility, Planning

I was walking through the skyway near Nicollet Mall on Monday and watching the backed up traffic below. Single occupancy fossil fuel vehicles, car commuters, were “blocking the box” and preventing buses full of other commuters from getting home on time. The flow of pedestrians at every signal cycle was more than the number of […]

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Safer, Saner Roads by Design

By on July 8, 2019 in Accessibility, ADA, Advocacy, Bicycling, Bike lanes, Environment, Health, Infrastructure, Pedestrians, Roads, Safety, Sidewalks, Streets, Suburbia, Walking

Engineers have a lot of options in how they design our streets and roads, how safe they make them, who they serve well and who they serve poorly. This post will examine why road design is so important, its underlying philosophy and, finally, some specific design options and why various elements are important. A future […]

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The Future of West River Parkway

By on April 29, 2019 in Accessibility, ADA, Bicycling, Downtown, History, Parks, Pedestrians, Pedestrians, Plans, Public Policy, Rivers, Roads, Sidewalks, Streets, Trends, Walking

With the Park Board’s Water Works project’s phase one underway, and improvements being made all along the river, I talked with two local Park Board commissioners, Jono Cowgill and Chris Meyer, about the future of West River Parkway, the parkway system, and Minneapolis parks. Both share a vision for a parkway system that returns to […]

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Marcy Holmes Revisited

By on March 27, 2019 in Accessibility, Neighborhoods, Streets

I walk around the Minneapolis Marcy-Holmes neighborhood often. I didn’t realize that they have a few, new neighborhood improvements planned and I became really curious. One is the new (finally) 5th St SE pedestrian and bicycle bridge plan that crosses over I-35W per this tweet and thread. Many people cross this narrow bridge every day […]

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A Bus Stop Disappointment Story: Excelsior Boulevard and Meadowbrook Road

By on March 22, 2019 in Accessibility, Buses, Sidewalks

Have you ever passed a bus stop and thought, “Damn, I feel so bad for anyone who has to catch their bus at that stop“? Even if you never ride the bus I’m certain everyone has seen at least one bus stop where they have had this thought. I’m deeply familiar with Saint Louis Park […]

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Complete Streets: A Springtime Slideshow

By on March 14, 2019 in Accessibility, ADA, Advocacy, Announcements, Environment, Infrastructure, Land use, Streets, Transportation, Walking

Upon reading this recent post by Alicia Valenti, I decided to take a walk with my camera around my own neighborhood. Here is a “slide-show” (pun intended) of the proceedings: On my walk, I was able to talk with some others about their bipedal experiences of the day. Outside the MPD 3rd Precinct, I spoke with […]

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How the 2019 Snowmageddon Showed That Cars Remain King

By on March 11, 2019 in Accessibility, Bicycling, Cars, Highways, Pedestrians, Safety, Sidewalks, Streets, Walking, Winter

February 2019 was a record-breaking month for snow in Minnesota with 39 inches of snowfall in just four weeks, an amount shattering the previous record of 26.5 inches in February 1962. Students have missed several days of school and some workers have shifted their commute mode to cross-country skiing, but the snow has been less […]

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