Twin Cities Streets for People

Sponsored by the Pollution Control Agency, this year's central exhibit in the Eco Experience is around a streetscape Read more >

Article by USA Today on the HAWK (High Intensity Activated Crosswalk) signal, now adopted into the latest edition of the MUTCD as the "Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon." This signal is used to improve pedestrian crossings at locations that do not meet traffic signal warrants, or at locations that do meet traffic signal warrants but where a decision is made to not install a traffic control signal. Read more >

The National Journal has an interesting and wide-ranging debate w/ policy experts about whether or not the fight for pedestrian and cyclist space is a 'zero sum' game or not. There are lots of answers from alternative transportation's heavy hitters. Read more >

Are dedicated bicycle corridors the key to making cycling more inviting for all? Traffic's Tom Vanderbilt explores the topic for Slate Magazine. Read more >

Over the objections of the Warehouse District business owners, The City of Minneapolis is set to make two huge improvements over the badly implemented bike lanes on Hennepin and 1st Avenues.

On Hennepin, they will be painting the Shared bus / bike lane green, and on 1st Avenue they are adding a 'buffer' between the bike lane and the parked car traffic. Also, they will be removing rush hour parking restrictions for North-bound traffic. Read more >

Not exactly local to the Twin Cities, but this Miami New Times article makes important points that are useful for thinking about conditions in our region. The story highlights the toll that South Florida's "incomplete streets" transportation framework takes on low income workers and others who depend on non-motorized transportation as their only mobility choice ("captive cyclists" with poor access to transit and no access to private motorized transportation). Read more >

(Reuters Health) - Middle-aged and older adults who live near high-traffic roads may have a heightened risk of dying from heart disease -- but the odds seem to go down if they move to a less-traveled neighborhood, a new study finds. Read more >

Wider roads and new freeways and highways are a big part of the stimulus plan - but there is a growing group of designers and civic leaders who would prefer to dismantle existing highways and freeways instead of building them. Read more >

From a Commuter Cycling Benefits study: The authors found that for the individuals who shift from car to bicycle, the benefits gained by increased physical activity were substantially larger (3 - 14 months of life gained) than the drawbacks of inhaled air pollution (0.8 - 40 days lost) and the increase in traffic accidents (5 – 9 days lost). Read more >

From the Star Tribune: "... oil continues to gush from beneath the Gulf of Mexico in what has become an epic environmental catastrophe with no clear end in sight ... the United States consumes more than 20 percent of the world's oil but has less than 2 percent of the world's reserves ... We've got to thoughtfully, gradually and inexorably kick our oil habit" Read more >