Turns out it may be even worse than previously rumored.

A few points:

Regular riders of the Greenway have seen the states of disrepair of many of the Greenway underpasses. A mobile operation will blast loose concrete off underpasses between Hennepin Avenue and Cedar, [...]]]>

The City of Minneapolis has started various bridge projects that will impact the Midtown Greenway for the immediate future and last through approximately mid-summer, weather permitting.

Regular riders of the Greenway have seen the states of disrepair of many of the Greenway underpasses. A mobile operation will blast loose concrete off underpasses between Hennepin Avenue and Cedar, enhancing safety and cleanliness — in some locations, concrete has been crumbling onto the trail. The bridge work will impact approximately 25-30 bridges. City workers will be working on these bridges during the week, usually during core hours of 7:30-3:30. Closures will be clearly marked and offer reasonable detours for trail users.

Additional bridge rehab work is planned near the Lakes — specifically, on the bridges over the Lake Calhoun-Lake of the Isles Channel, Lake Calhoun Parkway, and Dean Parkway. Work on these bridges will help widen the Greenway and extend the life of these bridges. Trail closures are not expected during this work.

In both cases, cyclists are asked to respect workers and posted closures and detours. In situations where the trail is narrowed but remains open, cyclists are asked to show respect to other trail users in lane placement and travel speed.

More information is available from the Midtown Greenway Coalition.

One project of especial note to bicyclists is the 3-year project to replace the structurally-deficient Lafayette Bridge (US 52) in Saint Paul. The project is [...]]]>

MNDOT has released the list of 2011 major road projects for the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota. All kinds of mayhem will ensue, especially during I94 work between Cretin/Vandalia and Nicollet Avenues.

One project of especial note to bicyclists is the 3-year project to replace the structurally-deficient Lafayette Bridge (US 52) in Saint Paul. The project is expected to add another river crossing for cyclists and pedestrians.

Obviously, many county and local roads are also subject to construction as well, and the projects for those roads are controlled by more local authorities. Cyclists should stay abreast of planned street work near their usual routes.

The proposed trail would link Edina to the main regional network of [...]]]>

The proposed Nine Mile Creek Trail extension through Edina has stirred up a lot of controversy, including NIMBYism disguised as faux environmental concern. This is normal in Edina, which has an excellent Bicycle Task Force working hard despite many residents who just don’t get it.

The proposed trail would link Edina to the main regional network of trails, including several commuter trails and a variety of recreational trails. Three Rivers Park District has come out in favor of the proposed extension, opting for the trail route along the creek rather than rerouting to nearby surface streets. This essentially provides the go-ahead for the extension, save one kinda mission-critical issue: Funding.

The seven-mile trail is expected to cost $20 million. Three Rivers hopes to receive $11 million in federal grants to fund construction, from federal awards expected to be announced in spring 2012. Additional funding will be sought from the Nine Mile Creek Watershed District and the Hennepin County Bicycle Capital Improvement Program. Once funding is secured, construction would begin in 2015.

Worth noting in this project is the overall cost — about $2.85 million per mile of trail. To be fair, this includes $5 million for trail bridges over the Crosstown (MN 62) and MN 100, and may include funding for stabilization of the creek banks in order to avoid yearly path washouts (although that’s quite unclear in the documents and coverage I’ve read). Even dropping the cost of the two bridges and leaving their mileage in the total, you’re still looking at more than $2 million/mile of trail — and it’s perhaps unfair to drop the bridge costs for the trail, as without passage over these two highways, the system will fail to achieve stated linkage goals.

Still, given that former Congressman James Oberstar cites averages of $128,000/mile to build 12-foot bicycle paths, it’s clear that his number must be some sort of average. Either some accounting must take place to remove items like the environmental work on the creek banks, or some paths must cost next to nothing to balance out this kind of average.

And, of course, it’s worth noting for the noble Edina residents who have opposed this project: That $11 million from the feds is by no means a sure thing with the current Congress and the next election not coming until fall 2012. They may have many years without having to worry about a trail being built on public right-of-way near their homes.

Thomas Gotschi, from the Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine at the University of Zurich in Switzerland, published “Costs and [...]]]>

I’ve discussed the challenges of using single-site studies as universal truths before (and I’ve seen a few being abused thusly), but there’s a really interesting study out of Portland, Oregon that suggests bikeway investment is a money-saver.

Thomas Gotschi, from the Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine at the University of Zurich in Switzerland, published “Costs and Benefits of Bicycling Investments in Portland, Oregon” in the Journal of Physical Activity & Health. Based on his affiliation, he wouldn’t seem to have any natural bias.

The study sought to monetize the ROI for money spent on bikeways in the past – and to estimate potential returns on future spending.

His findings? We can quote the abstract:

By 2040, investments in the range of $138 to $605 million will result in health care cost savings $388 to $594 million, fuel savings of $143 to $218 million, and savings in value of statistical lives of $7 to $12 billion. The benefit-cost ratios for health care and fuel savings are between 3.8 and 1.2 to 1, and an order of magnitude larger when value of statistical lives is used.

(All that about statistical lives? It’s an actuarial thing.)

The study provides an interesting perspective on how bikeway investment can influence health costs and disease prevention. The methods used could be applied to other cities.

We’re still waiting on the DOT report on the Non-Motorized Transportation Pilot Program and its impacts – a report that was due September 30, 2010, but is still pending. It’s also unknown what methodology will be used in that report — or how the new, Republican-controlled House Transportation Committee, now without program champion James Oberstar — will respond.

Generally speaking, every type of bicycle facility has its own drawbacks. Frequently, [...]]]>

Regular readers of this site will know that I can be a bit of a crank about certain types of bicycle facilities:

• Signage alone doesn’t make a route ‘bicycle-friendly.’

• Paint jobs sometimes just indicate what the knowledgeable already know.
• Bike lanes as backfill can create their own hazards.

Generally speaking, every type of bicycle facility has its own drawbacks. Frequently, the choice of implementation is based on familiarity or ease, rather than a real evaluation of the different drawbacks.

That’s why this article on Bikeway Network Recipes is interesting. The author rightly views all of the options as part of a toolkit. She specifically cites the Copenhagen cycling network – often held up as a model by others – and calls out the drawback found by some residents of that city: That inexperienced cyclists (and parents of small children!) are uncomfortable with them and thus don’t use them!

Her recommended recipe is to take advantage of the relatively easy-to-implement bike lanes and boulevards while also working on some of the high-profile, harder to implement and more expensive projects. In the Twin Cities, examples of this kind of split would be the Jefferson Avenue bicycle boulevard in St. Paul (fairly cheap, and really just a paint job indicating what locals already know to be true), and the Cedar Lake Trail extension (years in the making, fiercely expensive, but a needed piece of the network).

I especially like her thought to start wherever you can – and to keep going. The money quote, though:

…if there’s no reaction in the media, business community, or neighborhoods, you probably haven’t done enough – because you need to have the changes be visible enough to provoke a spirited conversation about bicycling as a mainstream form of transportation.

And that’s really what we need – a view of cyclists as the norm, and not freaks or fringe.

As I expected when I wrote about this bridge and its corroded cables in October, the reopening for cyclists does have some plowing dependencies. While Minneapolis is on its ‘new’ plowing budget for 2011 after completely blowing the budget for 2010 with all the [...]]]>

Yesterday, the Plymouth Avenue bridge in Minneapolis reopened for cyclists and pedestrians only.

As I expected when I wrote about this bridge and its corroded cables in October, the reopening for cyclists does have some plowing dependencies. While Minneapolis is on its ‘new’ plowing budget for 2011 after completely blowing the budget for 2010 with all the November snow emergencies, running plows over the bridge is not a budgetary or safety priority. (Hey, plows are heavy.) As a result, cyclists are being asked to walk their bikes over the bridge via the sidewalk. The shoveled walkway is not wide enough to support simultaneous cyclists and walker use.

As I also would suspect, pedestrians and cyclists were using the bridge anyway, despite signage.

This situation is expected to be extended, although come spring the snow/walk restrictions will obviously be a non-point. Minneapolis hopes to get help to fund the bridge repair, which includes both replacing the corroded cables and relocating the drainage pipes contributing to the corrosion. If funding is procured, repair would take place “late next year,” whatever that means.

However, this week Minneapolis lost a crossing of the Mississippi River for the very reason of hazard and corrosion. The [...]]]>

Ever since the new I35W bridge opened – and in light of the budgetary issues facing both Minnesota and the US – it seems as though attention to the crumbling state of many bridges has quieted down.

However, this week Minneapolis lost a crossing of the Mississippi River for the very reason of hazard and corrosion. The Plymouth Avenue Bridge was closed October 22 as a ‘safety precaution’ after discovery of corroded bridge tendons. On October 28, the city announced the bridge would remain closed for the winter.

As bridges go, this one isn’t even one of the older bridges in town to be showing such damage – it was built in 1983.

Officials say that they will evaluate leaving the bridge open for cyclists and pedestrians, as their overall weight doesn’t provoke the strain that 10,000 vehicles a day do. Those vehicles are mostly expected to move north to the Broadway Avenue bridge, or south to the Hennepin Avenue bridge. Traffic lights near both are being adjusted to help with traffic flow.

It’s difficult to say, with this bridge closure, if the bridge will be plowed through the winter if the bridge is kept open for cyclists and pedestrians. Presumably, plowing it would become a very low priority in light of the closure (as well as budget issues). It’s safe to suggest that cyclists are going to end up detouring too through the winter, even if the bridge is ‘kept open’ for them.