Cycling in Minnesota

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Bicyclists crossing the Martin Olav Sabo Bridge in Minneapolis Martin Olav Sabo Bridge and Bicyclists, Minneapolis 5 6 18 (28252212878).jpg
Bicyclists crossing the Martin Olav Sabo Bridge in Minneapolis

Cycling in Minnesota is a popular form of recreation, commuting, and competitive sport that has grown in prominence over the years. It has been a popular activity in the state since the late 19th century.

Contents

Minnesota offers an expansive network of cycling routes and bike-friendly amenities. The state has developed a variety of cycling paths, including urban routes, long-distance trails, and mountain biking terrains. Cycling in Minnesota is supported by an active community of cyclists, advocacy groups, and public initiatives aimed at improving cycling infrastructure and safety.

Minnesota was ranked as the 2nd most bicycle-friendly state by the League of American Bicyclists in 2017. [1] Much of the state's bicycle culture is centered in Minneapolis, the state's largest city, but the extensive network of trails has helped make cycling common throughout the state.

History

Bicycles were a popular means of personal transportation in the U.S. and Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries before the automobile became more widely available. As in many other states, bicyclists in Minnesota were early backers of the Good Roads Movement. Cyclists also formed clubs to gather and hold competitions. In the 1890s, Minnehaha Park in Minneapolis became home to a mile-long cycling track that was used for racing. [2] Minneapolis was already building an extensive park system during this time, which was built upon during succeeding generations—including a significant amount of help during the Great Depression when the Civilian Conservation Corps made improvements. Today, a nearly continuous system of parkways, bike paths, and pedestrian walkways encircle the city as the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway. Other cities, particularly Twin Cities suburbs have also built large networks of bike paths, but it's an idea that has spread to other places such as Rochester, which has about as much park land as Minneapolis despite having a significantly smaller population.

Cycling gained new life during the bike boom of the 1960s and 1970s. During this period, many bike shops in Minnesota were established, including Penn Cycle in Richfield, which became the first dealer for Trek bicycles in the late 1970s. Erik's Bike Shop, another Richfield-based chain, opened its first store in 1977. Minnesota capitalized on its rich railroading history by transforming half of the state's abandoned rail lines into cycling trails. The Heartland State Trail, opened in 1977, was Minnesota's first paved rail trail. [3]

Trail building in the state has continued rapidly since then, with various organizations including the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), counties, cities, and non-profits contributing to the development. Many of these trails are multi-use, accommodating activities like hiking, horseback riding, and mountain biking, as well as wintertime activities like skiing and snowmobiling. Notably, trails like the Root River Trail have revitalized small towns by promoting tourism.

During the 1980s, Minneapolis became the home of the Rollerblade company, which popularized inline skating. Inline skaters benefited from the smoothly paved trails, and the activity became part of the state's recreational landscape. In the same decade, cyclist Greg LeMond, who had moved to Minnesota, became the first American to win the Tour de France, doing so three times in 1986, 1989, and 1990.

In the mid-1990s, the Yellow Bike Coalition formed in the Twin Cities and initiated one of the region's first bike-sharing programs. Despite initial enthusiasm, the program eventually folded due to vandalism and theft. [4] [5] Some supporters of this initiative later established the Sibley Bike Depot, a non-profit community bike shop, in Saint Paul in 2001. A more successful bike-sharing program, Nice Ride Minnesota, began in 2010 but faced financial challenges in the wake of competing scooter-sharing services. The program was eventually shut down in 2023 when Lyft, which had taken over its operations, lost its sponsorship with the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota. [6]

Geography and trails

Urban cycling

Cyclists crossing 3rd Ave S in downtown Minneapolis Revisiting Bicycling in Minneapolis - Crossing in front of 300 S 4th Street.png
Cyclists crossing 3rd Ave S in downtown Minneapolis

Cities like Minneapolis and St. Paul offer extensive bike lanes, cycling programs, and bike-sharing systems. Minneapolis, in particular, has been consistently ranked as one of the most bike-friendly cities in the United States. [7] [8] In 2023, Minneapolis topped the City Ratings program's list of best large U.S. cities for cycling. A cornerstone of Minneapolis's cycling infrastructure is its extensive urban cycling network. [9] Central to this network is the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway, a continuous 51-mile (82 km) loop of off-street bike trails encircling the city. Established over a century ago, the byway serves both recreational and transportation purposes for cyclists, pedestrians, and other non-motorized users. [10] The city has expanded this network by repurposing former rail corridors into additional trails, such as the Midtown Greenway, [11] Cedar Lake Trail, [12] Hiawatha LRT Trail, and Dinkytown Greenway. [13] As of 2023, Minneapolis boasts 21 miles (34 km) of on-street protected bike lanes and 106 miles (171 km) of off-street trails and sidewalks. [9] The city aims to expand to 141 miles (227 km) of upgraded, all-ages-and-abilities bikeways by 2030.

According to ACS 5-year estimates, about 4.0% of Minneapolis residents traveled to and from work via bicycle in 2019. This declined to 3.3% in 2020, 2.9% in 2021, and 2.6% in 2022. The 1-year estimate for 2023 found this had dropped further to 1.8%. The decline may be due in part to the increased popularity of remote work in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. [14] Across Minnesota as a whole, 0.48% of commuters traveled via bicycle, down from a 2014 peak of 0.89%. [15]

Long-distance trails

Minnesota offers several long-distance trails. Trails have been built by many different organizations across the state. While the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) operates a system of State Trails, [16] counties, cities, and non-profit organizations have also worked to build bike paths. Most trails operated by the DNR are multi-use trails, supporting a range of activities including hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, and wintertime activities like skiing and snowmobiling. Minneapolis was also home to the Rollerblade company, which popularized inline skating in the 1980s.

Some of the popular cycle routes include:

For off-road enthusiasts, destinations like the Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area offer challenging terrains and are known for their mountain biking trails.

United States Bicycle Route System

Cyclist path sign for the Mississippi River Trail MRT trailblazer.svg
Cyclist path sign for the Mississippi River Trail

The United States Bicycle Route System, a national network using existing roads and trails, is in its early planning stages in Minnesota. According to an April 2010 plan by the Adventure Cycling Association, five U.S. Bicycle Routes are anticipated to pass through the state, all converging in the Twin Cities region. These include three east–west corridors: U.S. Bicycle Route 10 (USBR 10), U.S. Bicycle Route 20 (USBR 20), and U.S. U.S. Bicycle Route 30 (USBR 30). Additionally, two north–south corridors are designated: U.S. Bicycle Route 41 (USBR 41) and U.S. Bicycle Route 45 (USBR 45). [17]

USBR 45 is expected to largely parallel the present Mississippi River Trail, while USBR 41 is planned to diverge near the Twin Cities, passing through Duluth and extending up the North Shore of Lake Superior. USBR 45 became the first route to receive official designation in Minnesota, achieving this milestone in 2012. Signage for the route was completed in 2013. [18]

Though planning for these routes in Minnesota had a late start compared to states like Michigan and Wisconsin, the Minnesota Department of Transportation is actively working to integrate these national routes into the state's existing cycling infrastructure.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Miami Scenic Trail</span>

The Little Miami Scenic Trail is the fourth longest paved trail in the United States, running 78.1 miles (125.7 km) through five southwestern counties in the state of Ohio. The multi-use rail trail sees heavy recreational use by hikers and bicyclists, as well as the occasional horseback rider. Over 700,000 people made use of the trail in 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway</span> Parkway system in Minneapolis

The Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway is a linked series of park areas in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, that takes a roughly circular path through the city. The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board developed the system over many years. The corridors include roads for automobile traffic plus separate paths for pedestrians and bicycles, and extend slightly into neighboring cities. About 50 miles (80 km) of roadway and paths are in the system, and much of it was built in the 1930s as part of Civilian Conservation Corps projects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midtown Greenway</span> Shared-use path in Minneapolis, USA

The Midtown Greenway is a 5.7-mile (9.2 km) rail trail in Minneapolis, Minnesota that follows the path of an abandoned route of the Milwaukee Road railway. It is considered under segregated cycle facilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenway (landscape)</span> Shared-use path or linear park with vegetation

A greenway is usually a shared-use path along a strip of undeveloped land, in an urban or rural area, set aside for recreational use or environmental protection. Greenways are frequently created out of disused railways, canal towpaths, utility company rights of way, or derelict industrial land. Greenways can also be linear parks, and can serve as wildlife corridors. The path's surface may be paved and often serves multiple users: walkers, runners, bicyclists, skaters and hikers. A characteristic of greenways, as defined by the European Greenways Association, is "ease of passage": that is that they have "either low or zero gradient", so that they can be used by all "types of users, including mobility impaired people".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bicycle boulevard</span> Street designed as a bicycle route

A bicycle boulevard, sometimes referred to as a neighborhood greenway, neighborway, neighborhood bikeway or neighborhood byway is a type of bikeway composed of a low-speed street which has been "optimized" for bicycle traffic. Bicycle boulevards discourage cut-through motor-vehicle traffic but may allow local motor-vehicle traffic at low speeds. They are designed to give priority to bicyclists as through-going traffic. They are intended as a low-cost, politically popular way to create a connected network of streets with good bicyclist comfort and/or safety.

The United States Bicycle Route System is the national cycling route network of the United States. It consists of interstate long-distance cycling routes that use multiple types of bicycling infrastructure, including off-road paths, bicycle lanes, and low-traffic roads. As with the complementary United States Numbered Highways system for motorists, each U.S. Bicycle Route is maintained by state and local governments. The USBRS is intended to eventually traverse the entire country, like the Dutch National Cycle Routes and the United Kingdom's National Cycle Network, yet at a scale similar to the EuroVelo network that spans Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cycling in Detroit</span>

Detroit is a popular city for cycling. It is flat with an extensive road network with a number of recreational and competitive opportunities and is, according to cycling advocate David Byrne, one of the top eight biking cities in the world. The city has invested in greenways and bike lanes and other bicycle-friendly infrastructure. Bike rental is available from the riverfront and tours of the city's architecture can be booked.

U.S. Bicycle Route 20 (USBR 20) is a U.S. Numbered Bicycle Route that is planned to run from the Oregon Coast to Marine City, Michigan. As of 2021, sections of the route in Washington state and Michigan have been approved by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), comprising 387 miles (623 km).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenilworth Trail</span> Shared-use path in Minneapolis

The Kenilworth Trail is a paved bicycle trail in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It runs nearly 1.5 miles (2.4 km) and acts as a connector between the Cedar Lake Trail in the north and the Midtown Greenway in the south. Like the Cedar Lake Trail, most of the route is composed of a triple-divided cycleway/pedway with a pair of one-way paths for bicycles and another path for pedestrians. On some maps, a southern segment of the Kenilworth Trail is called the Burnham Trail. The trail corridor has been considered the most highly trafficked in the Minneapolis park system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mississippi River Trail</span> Long-distance bicycle route

The Mississippi River Trail is a designated bicycle and pedestrian trail that traverses the shores of the Mississippi River in the United States. The trail extends from the headwaters at Lake Itasca in Minnesota to near the mouth of the river in Venice, Louisiana. Much of the trail’s 3,000 miles (4,800 km) follows roadways used by motor vehicles, although some of the route is on multi-use trails. The segment in Minnesota has been designated as U.S. Bicycle Route 45, part of the U.S. Bicycle Route System.

U.S. Bicycle Route 50 (USBR 50) is a planned east–west cross country U.S. Bicycle Route that currently consists of two discontiguous sections: a western section between San Francisco and Border, Utah, and an eastern section between Terre Haute, Indiana, and Washington, D.C.

U.S. Bicycle Route 10 (USBR 10) is a United States Bicycle Route that is planned to follow U.S. Route 2 across the northern United States, beginning in Anacortes, Washington and ending in St. Ignace, Michigan. As of 2015, only 666 miles (1,072 km) of the planned corridor is designated, within the states of Washington, Idaho, and Michigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bicycle highway</span> Transport infrastructure

A bicycle highway, also known as a cycling superhighway, fast cycle route or bike freeway, is an informal name for a bicycle path that is meant for long-distance traffic. There is no official definition of a bicycle highway. The characteristics of a cycling highway mentioned by authorities and traffic experts include an absence of single-level intersections with motorized traffic, a better road surface and the absence of traffic lights. Bicycle highways are mentioned in connection with traffic jam. Owing to higher average speeds than normal cycling infrastructure, they provide an alternative to the car in commuter traffic. Often a cycling highway follows the route of a railway or other linear infrastructure.

U.S. Bicycle Route 7 (USBR 7) is a north–south U.S. Bicycle Route that follows the Western New England Greenway in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont in the United States.

U.S. Bicycle Route 66 (USBR 66) is a United States Bicycle Route that follows the former U.S. Route 66 (US 66) across the United States. The first section of the route, spanning 358 miles (576 km) between Baxter Springs, Kansas, and St. Louis, Missouri, was designated as USBR 66 in 2018. A second section was designated in 2021 between Santa Monica, California, and the Arizona state line near Needles, California. The Oklahoma section was designated in 2022. The rest of the route remains proposed but not yet designated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hiawatha LRT Trail</span> Shared-use path in Minneapolis

Hiawatha LRT Trail is a 4.7-mile (7.6 km), multi-use path adjacent to a light-rail transit line in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, that is popular with bicycle commuters. Users travel along the Metro Blue Line and Hiawatha Avenue transit corridor, reaching downtown Minneapolis near an indoor sports stadium at the trail’s northern end, and reaching a bridge above Minnehaha Creek at the trail’s southern end. Hiawatha LRT Trail provides a vital link between several Minneapolis neighborhoods and the city’s downtown area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Earth Trail</span> Shared-use path in Minneapolis

Little Earth Trail is an approximately 1-mile (1.6 km), multi-use bicycle path in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, that links several neighborhoods, parks, businesses, and trails in the Phillips community. The trail begins at its northern end near the intersection of East Franklin Avenue and 16th Avenue South and eventually follows the west side of Hiawatha Avenue to the Midtown Greenway and Martin Olav Sabo Bridge. Named after the nearby Little Earth community, the shared-use pathway provides transportation and recreation opportunities, and is a frequent location of activism on social justice issues in Minneapolis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trails in Minneapolis</span>

Minneapolis is often considered one of the top biking and walking cities in the United States due to its vast network of trails and dedicated pedestrian areas. In 2020, Walk Score rated Minneapolis as 13th highest among cities over 200,000 people. Some bicycling ratings list Minneapolis at the top of all United States cities, while others list Minneapolis in the top ten. There are over 80 miles (130 km) of paved, protected pathways in Minneapolis for use as transportation and recreation. The city's Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway parkway system accounts for the vast majority of the city's shared-use paths at approximately 50 miles (80 km) of dedicated biking and walking areas. By 2008, other city, county, and park board areas accounted for approximately 30 miles (48 km) of additional trails, for a city-wide total of approximately 80 miles (130 km) of protected pathways. The network of shared biking and walking paths continued to grow into the late 2010s with the additions of the Hiawatha LRT Trail gap remediation, Min Hi Line pilot projects, and Samatar Crossing. The city also features several natural-surface hiking trails, mountain-biking paths, groomed cross-country ski trails in winter, and other pedestrian walkways.

Minnesota Scenic Byways are a system of roads in the U.S. state of Minnesota which pass through areas of scenic, cultural, or recreational significance. There are currently 22 scenic byways in the system with a total length of 2,948 miles (4,744 km). Eight of these byways are also designated as National Scenic Byways, and the North Shore Scenic Drive is further designated as an All-American Road.

References

  1. ↑ "Bicycle Friendly State". League of American Bicyclists. 2017. Archived from the original on July 13, 2010. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  2. ↑ "CYCLING AT MINNEAPOLIS; Bald Again a Winner, Lowering the State Record for the Mile". New York Times. August 14, 1895. p. 3. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Fishing in Walker". Midwest Weekends. May 20, 2010. Archived from the original on August 12, 2010. Retrieved July 13, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Yellow Bike Program Keeps Pedaling Away". St. Paul Pioneer Press. September 16, 1995. p. 1B. Retrieved July 21, 2010.
  5. ↑ Mark Brunswick (March 22, 1998). "Here's a free-wheelin' idea; Minneapolis hub will lend wheels". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Nice Ride shuts down pioneering Minneapolis bike share program". MPR News. 2023-03-03. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
  7. ↑ "Bicycling's Top 50". Bicycling. 2010. Archived from the original on 2015-03-18. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
  8. ↑ "Minneapolis Closes the Gap with #1 Portland". City of Minneapolis. 2008. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
  9. 1 2 "How Minneapolis Became a Top U.S. Bike City". PeopleForBikes. Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  10. ↑ "Grand Rounds Scenic Byway System". Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board. Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  11. ↑ "Midtown Greenway". Midtown Greenway Coalition. Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  12. ↑ "Vision & History | Cedar Lake Park Association". cedarlakepark.org. Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  13. ↑ Nelson, Cody. "Dinkytown Greenway opens, connecting suburbs to downtown Minneapolis". The Minnesota Daily. Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  14. ↑ "Biking to Work Isn't Gaining Any Ground in the US". Bloomberg.com. 2023-09-27. Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  15. ↑ "Commute Mode". Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  16. ↑ "Minnesota State Trails". Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved July 13, 2010.
  17. ↑ "The United States Bicycle Route System: Corridor Plan" (PDF). Adventure Cycling Association. April 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 27, 2009. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
  18. ↑ "Mississippi River Trail receives state bikeway designation, becomes first US Bicycle Route in Minnesota". Archived from the original on 2013-03-15. Retrieved 2013-11-09.
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