The big news for bike share in Minneapolis this year is electric bikes. At a City Council meeting on Tuesday, the executive director of the bike share non-profit Nice Ride Minnesota, Bill Dossett, presented an outline of their 2019 plans. The numbers: 578 dockless “hubs” (14 per sq mile) 1,500 dockless bikes 1,800 electric bikes […]
I was reviewing the comments to the Draft Minneapolis Comprehensive Plan, and I came across an unexpected theme: That’s a weird and surprising notion. I didn’t expect to come across someone who’d suggest a popular form of winter transportation and recreation was not feasible in the winter. I continued reading… Whaaat? Well, maybe this […]
Summit Avenue has a long and storied history as a bike route which predates the automobile. Bringing back its protected bike lanes should be viewed as historic preservation.
The first time I rode an electric-assist bicycle (ebike) was around 15 years ago. My workplace, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, actually had ebikes as part of their vehicle fleet. Our work site is a mile away from downtown Saint Paul and a little over a mile away from the Capitol, and many people have […]
A very common comment from people is that they don’t ride a bicycle because they don’t feel safe on our streets. This is largely a universal human condition and not limited to just the U.S. Dutch folk feel no more comfortable in various situations than U.S. folk. And this is what drives transportation engineering in […]
The Minnesota Department of Transportation is currently finishing the planning process for re-decking the Smith Avenue Bridge over the Mississippi River in Saint Paul. As part of this 2018 project, they are also repaving Smith Avenue, from Grand Avenue all the way south to Interstate 494. The Smith Avenue Bridge, also known as “The High […]
Editor’s Note: One of the missing voices in bicycle planning in the Twin Cities is college students. This series aims to include the perspectives of a generation that is much less likely than their parents to own vehicles. The authors are Macalester students enrolled in the “Bicycling the Urban Landscape” course. The overarching objective is […]
Only one more Sunday Summary before Halloween, three more Summaries before the General Election (November 8, but you can vote early in Minnesota) and before Daylight Savings Time ends (November 6) and five Summaries before the next streets.mn board meeting (scheduled for December 3; these meetings are open to streets.mn readers and members). The Board […]
A co-worker recently began biking to work. As I have counseled him along the way, he has shared the many things he enjoys, but there have also been some headaches. One challenge was finding parking for his bicycle. “I hardly ever see other bikes on the rack out front, but I know a bunch of […]
On Thursday afternoon, October 6, people gathered at the corner of Kellogg and Jackson to see a glimpse of the first dedicated off-street bike path in downtown St. Paul. Bike advocates, city officials, and even two Twin Cities Marathon runners originally from Florida just passing by joined in the fun and excitement. They saw the Nice […]