Transportation Issues - Bicycle Connections

by Ed Lehr

District 1 Resident

Residents and the District Council are concerned about how easy it is to get around our neighborhoods, especially if you don’t have a car. For many of us - kids, elders and others – walking or biking can only be a viable option if there are safe ways to bike and walk. If you live on one side of the freeway and want to get to the other side, there are limited ways to get there. McKnight, Ruth, White Bear and the pedestrian bridge between Birmingham and Barclay are the only connections between our neighborhoods north and south of the freeway.

One place that has been identified as a problem in our north-south connections is where McKnight Road passes under I-94. This is a particularly difficult situation because McKnight is the border between St. Paul and Maplewood, and because MNDOT is responsible for upkeep around the freeway. For a detailed description and pictures of the issues related to bicycling in this area, click here. This is a large file and may take a while to download.

If you are interested in helping to develop proposals to the City on how to improve our streets for everyone - pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists - contact the Council at district1council@aol.com or call 651.501.6345. The City chooses projects to work on every two years as a part of its Capital Improvement Budget process (CIB). The next round of proposals is due later this year for processing in 2009.

May 27, 2008