Planned bikeway sparks controversy in St. Paul

Check out my story about a plan to expand cycling in St Paul.

The four-mile long Jefferson Avenue Bikeway would run from Mississippi River Boulevard on the west to Seventh Street near downtown. The bikeway is part of more than 75 miles of new bikeways and sidewalk changes planned under a federally-funded pilot program called Bike Walk Twin Cities.

The St. Paul bikeway is still in the planning phase. But for now the proposal includes elements known in today's cycling parlance as bicycle boulevard treatments. For the most part, there would be no traditional bike lanes — except along some stretches of Jefferson Avenue east of Lexington — but officials would redesign the street with features like bump outs, traffic circles or speed bumps to calm traffic and make it safer for bikers and pedestrians.

The proposal has angered some residents near the western end of the project. Their group is considering taking legal action to stop the bikeway. The next public meeting on the project is tonight.

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