Bicycle Infrastructure

[Scottie]

https://racketmn.com/no-nice-ride-bike- ... year-lyft/

Well this is truly a shame.
Nice Ride (and well as Car2Go) was a service that made NOT owning a car superior. You had the flexibility to bike to work and then take the skyway home if it was raining. Or take the bus. The flexibility Nice Ride offered with their dock stations really for me revolutionized mobility. I could bike to the METRO station then take the train to the MOA and then take the train back to catch a Car2Go and haul my stuff home myself.

It really allowed mobility flexibility that I never knew before and it made not owning a car far better than owning one. Now without Car2Go AND NiceRide you are at a far disadvantage NOT owning a car. Sure you can uber/taxi where you want but you don't get that same sense of satisfaction and independence.

Heck even HourCar helped supplement that need when you needed to haul more too or needed to take a day trip. It was awesome not owning a car, because of the services Nice Ride , Car2Go, and HourCar provided. Now two of them are gone? I couldn't imagine not owning a car and living downtown anymore. You can't even shop at Target in the evenings. Yikes!

The city should REALLY step in and fund Nice Ride before downtown becomes too toxic to continue to be a carless paradise. Although, I think it's already to late given nothing has ever replaced Car2Go.

I remember 4th of July, I took a nice ride to my friends then we went to see fireworks taking Nice Rides, then we took Car2Go to the store and then back again, then after that I just took the bus home. I didn't have to worry about my bike being stolen or having to bring it back home before dark, or where to park my car and then take it home. No I could just decide my mobility on a whim or the weather or the supply and just live. It was great what these services provided, they are going to be deeply missed as we all slowly go back to driving our own cars again. smh. The hay day of a great carless downtown paradise is over.

That is deeply sad and depressing.

Similar boat here. We have been a 1 car family for almost 15 years and things like Nice Ride, HourCar, frequent transit service and Car2go made this fairly easy even with kids activities all over the metro. I was exited for Evie as a potential Car2Go replacement but the home area is so small it hasn't been helpful. I'd love to see the city step in and rescue Nice Ride or help fund Evie expansion. It (along with Car2Go or potentially an expanded Evie area) served as a critical filler for the one way trips. Between all of this and the awful frequency of transit since the driver shortage and pandemic we are pretty frustrated. It feels like the city wants to get people out of cars but all the tools that help move in that direction keep going away or getting harder to use. We so desperately want to avoid having to get another car or drive more. The though of that is just so depressing.

[Bakken2016]

https://racketmn.com/no-nice-ride-bike- ... year-lyft/

Well this is truly a shame.
Nice Ride (and well as Car2Go) was a service that made NOT owning a car superior. You had the flexibility to bike to work and then take the skyway home if it was raining. Or take the bus. The flexibility Nice Ride offered with their dock stations really for me revolutionized mobility. I could bike to the METRO station then take the train to the MOA and then take the train back to catch a Car2Go and haul my stuff home myself.

It really allowed mobility flexibility that I never knew before and it made not owning a car far better than owning one. Now without Car2Go AND NiceRide you are at a far disadvantage NOT owning a car. Sure you can uber/taxi where you want but you don't get that same sense of satisfaction and independence.

Heck even HourCar helped supplement that need when you needed to haul more too or needed to take a day trip. It was awesome not owning a car, because of the services Nice Ride , Car2Go, and HourCar provided. Now two of them are gone? I couldn't imagine not owning a car and living downtown anymore. You can't even shop at Target in the evenings. Yikes!

The city should REALLY step in and fund Nice Ride before downtown becomes too toxic to continue to be a carless paradise. Although, I think it's already to late given nothing has ever replaced Car2Go.

I remember 4th of July, I took a nice ride to my friends then we went to see fireworks taking Nice Rides, then we took Car2Go to the store and then back again, then after that I just took the bus home. I didn't have to worry about my bike being stolen or having to bring it back home before dark, or where to park my car and then take it home. No I could just decide my mobility on a whim or the weather or the supply and just live. It was great what these services provided, they are going to be deeply missed as we all slowly go back to driving our own cars again. smh. The hay day of a great carless downtown paradise is over.

That is deeply sad and depressing.

Similar boat here. We have been a 1 car family for almost 15 years and things like Nice Ride, HourCar, frequent transit service and Car2go made this fairly easy even with kids activities all over the metro. I was exited for Evie as a potential Car2Go replacement but the home area is so small it hasn't been helpful. I'd love to see the city step in and rescue Nice Ride or help fund Evie expansion. It (along with Car2Go or potentially an expanded Evie area) served as a critical filler for the one way trips. Between all of this and the awful frequency of transit since the driver shortage and pandemic we are pretty frustrated. It feels like the city wants to get people out of cars but all the tools that help move in that direction keep going away or getting harder to use. We so desperately want to avoid having to get another car or drive more. The though of that is just so depressing.

Agreed, Evie's home area needs to be larger, but they definitely need more funding for more vehicles. I live in the North Loop, and I find my self having to travel most of the time on transit to get to an Evie, because they are so thinly stretched with their current home area.

[alexschief]

We happen to live just a block away from an Evie charger, and it has been very very helpful to get to some destinations (the X for a Wild game for example, where it also saved us the need to fight for parking).

But our circumstance is obviously quite ideal for Evie use. It is frustrating that the program has not expanded since inception. It needs more investment. The model is proven, at least from a user perspective, it needs to grow to survive.

[COLSLAW5]

Evie has a whole fleet of cars sitting at the old amtrak depot. Wonder what they are waiting for getting them in service? maybe there are tracking parts that are on back order.

[HuskyGrad]

Evie has a whole fleet of cars sitting at the old amtrak depot. Wonder what they are waiting for getting them in service? maybe there are tracking parts that are on back order.

Maybe it's related to the Bolt battery replacement program.

[Hero]

If you live in the service area Metro Transit micro is another option if you want to live car free.

[Anondson]

Summit bike accommodations get positive backing of the Summit Hill district council.

https://www.startribune.com/st-paul-dis ... 600259227/

[eazydp]

If you live in the service area Metro Transit micro is another option if you want to live car free.

TIL. This is a really cool service. I'd love for a Southside equivalent.

[Anondson]

So much has been passing this legislative session. Turns out Minnesota is getting the Idaho stop.


https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/text.p ... n_number=0

[Silophant]

A little frustrating that it's only stop signs, not stoplights, but thinking more about it, most stop lights that I'd be comfortable treating as a stop sign are on low-enough traffic streets that they should be four-way stops anyway, so I guess the move is to advocate for that.

[daveybabymsp]

A little frustrating that it's only stop signs, not stoplights, but thinking more about it, most stop lights that I'd be comfortable treating as a stop sign are on low-enough traffic streets that they should be four-way stops anyway, so I guess the move is to advocate for that.

35th and Bryant comes to mind


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[Mdcastle]

Yeah, unless it's 3 AM, if "there's not a vehicle in the vicinity" it's a pretty good indication the signal is unwarranted.

[SurlyLHT]

A little frustrating that it's only stop signs, not stoplights, but thinking more about it, most stop lights that I'd be comfortable treating as a stop sign are on low-enough traffic streets that they should be four-way stops anyway, so I guess the move is to advocate for that.

35th and Bryant comes to mind


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I agree, but this sounds weird, but I feel like folks are more likely to blow a stop sign in a car. I feel safer approaching a stop light on my bike and knowing the cars will stop or just one or two will blow it thn I do when I approach a stop sign. So I rather have unneeded stop lights stay as stop lights because cars don't obey stop signs is what I am saying?

There are also other stop lights which are needed, I will stop at the light and wait for the traffic to clear then go through the light on my bike. This is especially true when there are nearby stop lights which are red and stopping traffic. I do this on Olson Memorial. My light is red, but an adjacent light is stopping the EB or WB traffic so I go to the middle and wait or cross if it is clear. This is especially helpful when traffic is mostly going one direction due to rush hour. If the rush hour traffic has a red light nearby and the non-rush hour traffic has nearly no traffic you can cross easily against the light.

[Trademark]

A lot of the random traffic lights are due to the pedestrian priority network. The city feels like crossing a traffic light is safer than a stop sign as a pedestrian.

[xandrex]

Maybe it's the start of summer and the craziness that comes with that, but I've noticed cars just fully blowing through some stop signs (Grand & 31st near me comes to mind) recently. Since the pandemic, it really does feel like anything goes on roads, but stop lights feel a little bit safer.

[Hero]

Here is a quote from Minneapolis's Vision Zero Action Plan.

"Due to a variety of factors, Minneapolis Police stopped fewer than 3,000 people in 2021 for moving or equipment violations—compared to about 16,000 traffic stops in 2019 and about 90,000 traffic stops in 2012"

If traffic laws are not being enforced why should we expect people to follow them? We need to redesign our streets so enforcement is less necessary.

[Hero]

If you live in the service area Metro Transit micro is another option if you want to live car free.

TIL. This is a really cool service. I'd love for a Southside equivalent.

It would be nice but I'd settle for better east/west service in south Minneapolis.

[Trademark]

If you live in the service area Metro Transit micro is another option if you want to live car free.

TIL. This is a really cool service. I'd love for a Southside equivalent.

It would be nice but I'd settle for better east/west service in south Minneapolis.

Particularly with the cost of running Metro Transit Micro, and the fact that it does not scale and cannot move more than a few passengers an hour with one driver. With around the same cost as Metro Micro, the 23 could become high frequency, and probably some weekend service on the 46.

[StandishGuy]

Totally agree! The Route #23 is still at one bus an hour off peak and weekends. In June weekday frequency is being increased to every 30 minutes, but remains one bus per hour in the evening and on weekends. Abysmal bus service!!!

[SurlyLHT]

Here is a quote from Minneapolis's Vision Zero Action Plan.

"Due to a variety of factors, Minneapolis Police stopped fewer than 3,000 people in 2021 for moving or equipment violations—compared to about 16,000 traffic stops in 2019 and about 90,000 traffic stops in 2012"

If traffic laws are not being enforced why should we expect people to follow them? We need to redesign our streets so enforcement is less necessary.

It's not going to work. You'll have to go to extremes. I mean we can't even keep people from driving in the city parks. The park board had to place logs all around a park to stop people from driving in it. There were even reports of drivers aiming for kids playing sports on a field to scare them. If we struggle to keep cars from going where they aren't supposed to be, how are going to modify behavior on the roads where they are intended?

There are also unintended consequences of road diets and etc. Whether it is snow clearing or allowing emergency vehicles or me watching housing contractors trying to see how they can deliver modular units for affordable housing at the intersection of a road which had a diet and a bicycle blvd.

As I've said on here before, if you reduce one area the cars just go to the next easiest place to pass through, which often is residential streets versus an artery. You'll be better off having a wider artery and less cars trying to bypass the congested artery by going down residentials streets and running stop signs. Which is more dangerous to cyclists and pedestrians? Also at an artery intersection I have a stoplight and clear visibility. Versus on a residential street I have a stop sign and often parked cars blocking my view. I sneak out into intersections and hope there isn't a car whizzing down the block toward me just out of my view. If a car is speeding it's better that they are on an artery than a residential street because you can see them coming. On a residential street it's a lot harder to see them especially if they are E/W crossing the shorter blocks. I try to use my ears as much as possible.