Results from the District 7 Community Workshop
Summary
The District 7 Statewide Bicycle Planning Study Community Workshop was held at the MnDOT District 7 Offices, located at 2151 Bassett Drive, Mankato, 56001 from 4 to 6 PM on February 28, 2012. Approximately 30 people participated in the workshop.
Findings
Workshop participants completed a S.W.O.T. (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis of bicycling facilities in our State. Following the S.W.O.T. analysis, participants worked in small groups to organize their responses in themed categories. The themes were prioritized by the participants, unless otherwise noted, with theme prioritized as #1 being the most important.Strengths
Theme (unranked by participants): Government and Agencies and Policies
- Statewide MnDOT Department on Biking
- Marketing/coordination of recreational trails
- City of Mankato working to be bike friendly community
- Bike friendly law makers (Tim Walz and Julie Rozen)
- Area leaders are behind bike paths and safety
- Share the road campaign
Theme (unranked by participants): Planning
- Federal Transportation Enhancement funding directed toward bicycle trail and other recreational facility development
- Dedicated funding source for trails with ATP enhancement funding
- Seems to be a plan for including biking and pedestrian uses in new roadway construction
- Adopting the CSS Manual as part of Complete Streets
- Maps are good
- Collaboration among agencies and organizations
Theme (unranked by participants): Citizen Involvement
- Clean air
- Developing statewide network of trails
- Cycling community supportive
- Synergy [with] transportation, fitness, wellness, economy, environment, saving money, tourism, recreation, family values....
- Lots of citizens interested
- Minneapolis healthy participation lanes, bridges – acceptance of bikers on street
- Public support for bicycling initiatives
Theme (unranked by participants): Value Quality of Life
- Blossoming interest and availability of funds for trails
- Good motorists [with] respect for bicycles
- Bicycling is fun, practical and liberating experience
Theme (unranked by participants): Infrastructure
- The state bicycle trails are a great recreation/transportation resource!
- I feel like cities are focusing on bicycling more than they have in the past
- Sakatah Trail
- Masabi Range Trail
- Cannon River Trail
- Trails
- Beautiful recreational trails
- Awesome “leisure” trails
- Metro trying to implement features
- The fact that it is even acknowledged/being planned for
- Southern Minnesota county road system has very good paved highways
- Continual expansion of paved bicycle trails
- The trails that we have now. It’s a great start
- Many wide paved shoulders already on state highways
- Existing trails covering large parts of MN (Sakata, Paul Bunyan)
- Good county roads
- Lots of bike trails
- Many miles of paved trails
- Multitude of trails
- Strong trail network
- Broad community support
- Current State Trail System that is in place is a natural to build upon expanding regionally
- Highway 61 Bike Trail which interfaces with State Parks above Two Harbors is an excellent template
- Excellent local and regional trails
- Trail system and planning for connections
- Excellent local and regional trails
- Bridges
- Dedicated bituminous bike trails within the Mankato and surrounding community is great
- Routes
- Wide roads and shoulders
Weaknesses
Theme (unranked by participants): Planning
- No regional planning for trails
- Not all of Minnesota has trail system
- Lack of DNR/MnDOT strategic planning
- Sometimes process is so slow
- Too much emphasis on recreation and not enough on commuting and daily errands
- Many miles to go to complete a comprehensive trail system across the state
- The more rural areas are more challenged to find funds for trails
- Work place support for users – no facilities for work places
- Keep working on linking together disconnected routes and trails
- Off-street recreational cycling still dominates
- Lack of communication of the trails that we have now
- Commuter bicycle routes on slopes that are too steep
- Need more collaboration amongst agencies and organizations
- Could improve communication of local and regional trails (existing, proposed and conceptual trails)
- Maps – need more
- Design of some bikeways generates some bicycle/auto conflicts
- Lack of knowledge of any Mn/DOT designated trails?
- Public/private partnerships need to be expanded in order to fund trail systems interfacing with an existing state funded trail, ie. Sakatah interconnecting with lakes in area
Theme (unranked by participants): Infrastructure
- Narrow roads and shoulders. Need to widen them.
- Updating old infrastructure to become more cycling friendly
- Not enough paved shoulders on existing roadways or use of rumble strips on shoulders
- Lack of paved shoulders on state trunk highways
- There are some wonderful street lanes and bike-supportive signage in the cities – much less in outlying areas and small towns, even though car signage is equivalent in both
- A period on street/city design that was not built to accommodate bicycle traffic and size of modern automobiles
- Design of some bikeways generate pedestrian/bicycle conflict
- Need more bridges
- Use of rumble strips limits routes
- County roads often without shoulders or rumbled when not really needed
- Rumble strips are a hazard to cyclists
- Bikeways between cities often not safe
- Much money spent on car transport. Need more bike infrastructure
Theme (unranked by participants): Maintenance
- Once trails are built, the money for maintenance can be hard to come by. Example: the Sakatah Trail near Eagle Lake has major potholes.
- Maintenance of road shoulders (potholes, cracks, debris)
- Some paved trials are deteriorating to a point where they are unusable
- Bike paths don’t get the same priority as streets for prompt snow removal
- Existing trails need repair
- Maintenance on bituminous bike trails is needed to keep them usable
- Maintenance of state trail system
Theme (unranked by participants): Traffic Laws
- Perception outstate that bike is for recreation not transportation also
- Focus on moving traffic as fast as possible
- Bikes/walking seen as not for adults
- Lack of motorist education
- There is a need for education informing riders that the laws are for everyone, not only grade school children
- Round abouts limit cycling
- Roads are being built without bike/walk provisions that will last decades
- Urban bias
- Automobile bias
- What is safety of round abouts for bicyclists (do drivers see bicyclists in round abouts?)
- Too much concern about fully stopping at stop signs – cyclists should be able to coast through when doing so does not impede traffic flow in any way (e.g. an empty intersection)
- Some riders make all look bad by violating laws (Going through stop signs, red lights, etc)
- Traffic laws privilege autos over bicycles (look at Chicago’s bicycling ordinance)
- Enforcement of traffic laws (including cyclists) not high
- On street biking with in city streets can be dangerous
- Vehicles tend to ignore bicycles
- Traffic signals triggered by autos don’t recognize bicycles
- Stop as yield law for cyclists would be good to have (Oregon and other states have it, not sure where it is at in MN)
Opportunities
Theme (unranked by participants): Budget
- Build trails on all new highways that connect areas of interest
Theme (unranked by participants): Legal
- Change traffic laws for yield only for bikes at traffic control
- Biking in Montreal in June 2011, I was amazed by the “Montreal Protocol” that gave priority to bikes on streets. Drivers consistently and courteously yielded to bikers at intersections – phenomenal! How to cultivate as a public ethos?
Theme (unranked by participants): Intermodal
- Linkages to transit – intermodal linkage
- Still looking for better bike access to the airport. I’ve heard it’s in the works. I depend on taking my bike on the light rail to/from the airport
Theme (unranked by participants): Education/Training
- Providing bikers with maps based on actual volume of traffic – paved shoulders
- More training opportunity for vehicular cycling techniques and skills
- Universal education program and [organized] days for mandatory biking any short [distance]
Theme (unranked by participants): Healthy Living
- Better land use would also create better neighborhoods and communities
- Every road construction and repair process is an opportunity
- Current focus on obesity and fitness
- Opportunity to promote bicycling as commuting modality – economical, healthy, and often as quick
- Share info of benefits of bike/walk to health, environment
Theme (unranked by participants): Linkage to existing roads [and other facilities]
- Better biking areas in cities and counties
- When bridges are replaced, bicycle access can be included
- With bridge maintenance on the agenda, a chance to improve bike lanes on bridges
- Use on street routes for bicycle connector to trails
- Many county roads make for good bike routes
- Lots of scenic roads to make into bikeways
Theme (unranked by participants): Community and Government Collaboration
- Keep up the planning/commitment
- Need communities to be engaged with the state trail system
- Work with groups already working on trails in the area
- Unite bicycling interest groups to promote the activity
- Many citizens are interested and will contribute knowledge
- Opportunity for local governments to partner with Mn/DOT regarding trail development on respective properties
- Greater coordination with DNR and other state agencies
- Regional public private partnerships with interested communities
Theme (unranked by participants): Infrastructure
- Need more: racks; shelters; H2O stops
Theme (unranked by participants): Integrating Trail System Statewide Incorporating Cities and Towns
- State parks can provide gateways to a more extensive trail system beyond the boundaries
- Bike ways between cities and towns to facilitate transportation
- Cities can work with the state to integrate bike routes so a person can bike from one town to another if they want – possibly an on-line interactive mapping tool?
- Creating bike routes that provide bikers connections to scenic spots, recreational areas, etc.
- MN River Valley is scenic
- Many cities on MN River between Twin Cities and Mankato to New Ulm and beyond
- River bike trail between Mankato and St. Peter to better provide access to the MN River
- Connect communities with trail systems
- Connect our trails
- Connect major towns together, ex. Mankato to St Peter and Mankato to New Ulm
- State-wide network for good bike-friendly roads (state map)
Threats
Theme (unranked by participants): Design Issues
- Existing rights of way (narrow corridors)
- Trails put next to roads that cross driveways and secondary streets
- Multi-use versus restrictions
Theme (unranked by participants): Motorist/Cyclist Relations
- Lack of education about pedestrian and cycling rules – especially use of sidewalks
- Vehicular/bicycle conflicts
- Drivers often confused by bikers’ right to use street instead of shared use off-road trails when moving too fast to be compatible with pedestrians. More education regarding this needed in driver ed.
- Hostile motorists not open to cyclists
- Cyclists with poor [etiquette] manners damage public opinion of cycling
- Drivers who don’t know or refuse to follow the rules of the road
Theme (unranked by participants): Funding
- Cut in $ for construction, safe routes to schools
- Lack of $
- Financing trail development
- finances
- Federal Transportation Enhancement funding to no longer be dedicated to bicycle trail development
- State funding will be limited
- Funding expansions and maintenance
- Lack of money
- $ not being a priority
- Tradition in state of spending big money on auto transportation
- Taxpayers may feel that tax dollars should not be spent on what might be perceived as “recreational” projects – need to emphasize the economic benefits of bicycling
- Current transportation bill in Congress
Theme (unranked by participants): Bias Against Bikes (Policy bias rather than a personal bias)
- Automobile bias in transportation planning. Perception that gas taxes pay for roads and thus money should be spent on auto infrastructure
- Universal interest [or lack of] on part of communities throughout state
- Bike advocates some times go over board and cause friction with lawmakers, planners, etc
- Cyclists perceived as narrow interest group
- Public perception that trails waste money that should go to highways. Need revenue source for trails that doesn’t take away from highways
- Some law makers don’t think of bikes as transportation
Theme (unranked by participants): Right of Way and Acquiring Land for Biking
- Private landowners
- Not in my backyard
- Barrier to new trails and linking routes caused by private lands and existing development which is not easily accessed.
Additional comments may also be provided to Greta Alquist through March 30, 2012.
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