Here is our first-ever list of walking advocacy priorities! We're excited to be working on these with our volunteer Pedestrian Work Group and partners.

Priority policy items to improve walking in Minneapolis

 

• • Have the 2040 Minneapolis comprehensive plan include new walk-friendly policies.
  • Improve winter sidewalk and corner maintenance so people can stay walking and rolling year round.
  • Improve how we do stop lights to make them friendly to people walking and biking.
  • Create and fund a pedestrian crossings improvement program to be able to make more proactive walk safety improvements on streets.

 

Less like this		More like this

 

Priority street projects to improve walking

 

• • Supporting priorities of the Minneapolis Public Housing Association High Rise Council on walking and access issues near high rises;
  • Hennepin Avenue downtown
  • Franklin Avenue west of Minnehaha Avenue
  • Hiawatha/Lake intersection

 

We'll also be monitoring and supporting as needed these additional street projects

 

• • 8th Street Downtown (we already helped get safer, narrower traffic lanes on this project!)
  • 4th Street Downtown
  • Hennepin Ave Uptown
  • North Minneapolis Greenway
  • Hennepin/1st NE
  • Emerson/Fremont North
  • Samatar Crossing
  • Broadway NE
  • Lyndale Ave S crossings
  • Upper Harbor Terminal

 

Want to help with any of these?

 

Our volunteer Pedestrian Work Group is working on these! We can always use more people. Email ([email protected]) or call me (612-964-8902) if you want to be involved! I'd love to chat with you. 

Thanks to everyone who gave their feedback on our potential 2017 bicycle priorities; we've taken your ideas and created our list of high-priority bicycle projects for 2017! Take a look at which projects we will be focusing on this year.

As you might already know, this year Our Streets MPLS (formerly the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition) will begin work with pedestrian advocacy, too! See our 2017 Walking Priorities here.

Protected Bikeway/Street/Greenway Priorities

 

North Minneapolis Greenway

The planned Greenway demonstration is successfully installed, Northside Greenway Council makes a recommendation for design based on meaningful and representative community input, and progress for finding funding is initiated to fulfill the community's vision.

Olson Highway protected bikeway

The project is planned in 2020 as part of Bottineau LRT, but still not finalized

3rd Ave bikeway extension

Extending the 3rd Ave S protected bikeway from downtown across the river in 2017.

Washington Ave S

Extending the planned protected bikeway from 5th Street to the U of M in 2017.

Grant St W 

A plan to connect 3rd Ave protected bikeway and Loring Park.

Hennepin Ave downtown

A final design for reconstructed Hennepin Ave with protected bike lanes.

Samatar Crossing

A final design for pedestrian/bike-only connection from Vikings Stadium to Cedar-Riverside.

Grand Rounds completion

The vision for this plan exists, but there is no funding yet.

Hennepin/1st NE

Plan includes protected bike lanes & pedestrian improvements. Repaving will take place in 2018.

Marshall St NE

Engagement beginning this year to build support to seek funding.

18th Ave NE

Also called the "Great Northern Bikeway" connections, the plan calls for the gaps to be closed at the connecting near 18th Ave from River to Stinson Blvd.

University Ave/4th St NE

Proposed as a protected bikeway with a timeline of construction in 2018.

15th Ave SE

Planned for a protected bikeway to be installed in 2019 with one-way protected bike lanes in each direction.

UMN projects-- 10th Ave bridge, 19th Ave S, 20th Ave S

Planned for 2019 construction to take place, typically two-way on east side of street.

Oak St SE

A plan to connect the existing protected bikeway, between Washington Ave SE and University Ave SE.

UMN Law School stairs & connection

Creating a bike connection from Washington Ave bridge by the Law School.

26th/28th Ave extension

A protected bikeway extension to Hennepin, likely for this year.

Cedar/Franklin/Minnehaha intersection

The reconstruction project will take place this year.

Hiawatha LRT extension

Plan to extend the trail between the Midtown Greenway and 32nd St.

Whittier to downtown

Either Blaisdell, Nicollet, or 1st Ave.

Midtown Greenway extension to St. Paul

A plan exists, but getting over the River is a challenge.

South Minneapolis Greenway

A concept for a greenway connecting Gold Medal Park, along 10th and 11th Ave, to Richfield, connecting a number of parks and schools.

 

Local Policy and Engagement Priorities

 

Winter Study

A study on the current level of service in the winter for bikes and peds & working to make it better.

Public Works Community Engagement Process

We are working with Public Works and The Alliance to do a report on community engagement best practices around transportation projects. Public Works are managing many projects and we hope to find some ideas that can help in that work while making sure we are engaging community equitably and supporting City goals and policy, like Complete Streets. 

Multimodal Level of Service (LOS)

Have the City use a tool for evaluating streets that considers walking, biking, & transit too.

Signals

Work to improve stoplights for walk/bike (timing, buttons, etc.).

Public realm greening policy

Supporting better greening near sidewalks & bikeways.

Community engagement work

Working with the City to improve their engagement process. 

Curbside use policy

Policy around drop-offs, taxis, delivery trucks, etc.

Policy around parking in bike lanes

Policy & enforcement around parking/stopping in bike lanes.

Construction detour policy for bike and walk sidewalk access

Ensuring a proper detour policy for bike lanes and sidewalk access.

City funding and support for bike encouragement

Also includes education and infrastructure.

School policy around Safe Routes to School

Encouraging school policies that support Safe Routes to School.

City Bike and Walk Platinum Status

Pursuing “Platinum Status” for Minneapolis to be a Bike and Walk Friendly Community.

Lowering speed limits

Lowering car speed limits on local streets.

Enforcement (reduce racial profiling)

Reducing racial profiling in enforcement.

Engaging and serving people with low-income who ride bikes

Hennepin County “Enhanced Bikeway” Plan

Plan will identify priority protected bikeways & other "enhanced" routes; work planned for 2017.

Increase Hennepin County funding for biking and walking

Upgrading protected bikeways from flexible plastic posts to planters, curbs, and more substantial protection from car traffic.

 

State Policy Priorities

 

State Transportation Bill

Include dedicated bike/ped funding in any new bill.

 

 

Other Bike Lane and Street Priorities

 

Golden Valley Rd N

2018 repaving project, with engagement occurring in 2017.

Lyndale Ave

Bike lanes near Camden Bridge as part of the 2018 repaving project.

Thomas/Queen Ave N

Installation of a bicycle boulevard.

Emerson/Freemont Ave N

Installation of protected bike lanes & pedestrian improvements, planned for 2018.

2nd St N loop

Work to get bike lanes added.

8th St SE

Project stretches from Central Ave NE to 15th Ave NE as part of a 2017 resurfacing project.

Bike boulevard crossing at Hennepin Ave/5th St

Improve the bike boulevard crossing at Hennepin & 5th Ave.

18th Ave SE

A bike boulevard and two-way bikeway on the east side of the street that connects Como Ave to NE Diagonal Trail.

Franklin Ave bike lanes

Adding bike lanes where none currently exist. The bridge over 35W will be done in 2018 and it would be timely to have this project happen then.

10th Ave Cut-Through

Make a bike path through the median between Lake and 31st.

29th closure at Midtown Greenway

The pilot closure has been a success, but the City hasn't yet said they will make it permanent.

Other planned bike lanes as part of repaving projects

38th St SW, Bloomington Ave far south, 42nd/43rd St SW, 60th St E