Midtown Greenway
Encyclopedia
Rail trail
A rail trail is the conversion of a disused railway easement into a multi-use path, typically for walking, cycling and sometimes horse riding. The characteristics of former tracks—flat, long, frequently running through historical areas—are appealing for various development. The term sometimes also...
in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. It is considered under segregated cycle facilities
Segregated cycle facilities
Segregated cycle facilities are marked lanes, tracks, shoulders and paths designated for use by cyclists from which motorised traffic is generally excluded...
.
Used both recreationally and for commuting, the partially below-grade Greenway runs east-west about one block north of Lake Street
Lake Street (Minneapolis)
Lake Street is a major east-west thoroughfare in Minneapolis, Minnesota which is located between 29th and 31st Streets in south Minneapolis. It was named such because it runs through the Chain of Lakes area on the west side of town and passes over a small channel linking Lake Calhoun and Lake of...
. It provides cyclists
Bicycle
A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....
, inline skaters
Inline skates
In-line skates are a type of roller skate used for inline skating. Unlike quad skates, which have two front and two rear wheels, inline skates have two, three, four, or five wheels arranged in a single line...
, runners
Running
Running is a means of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. It is simply defined in athletics terms as a gait in which at regular points during the running cycle both feet are off the ground...
and pedestrians a virtually traffic-free route across the city.
History
The GreenwayGreenway (landscape)
A greenway is a long, narrow piece of land, often used for recreation and pedestrian and bicycle user traffic, and sometimes for streetcar, light rail or retail uses.- Terminology :...
lies in a former Milwaukee Road railroad corridor along 29th Street. This corridor had been abandoned west of Hiawatha Avenue but is still active east of Hiawatha as part of the Minnesota Commercial Railway
Minnesota Commercial Railway
The Minnesota Commercial Railway is a short line railroad in the United States.This railroad operates out of the St. Paul area with service to Minneapolis, Bayport, Hugo, Fridley and New Brighton. It is considered a terminal and switching line. It is based out of a roundhouse on Cleveland Ave. in...
. The rail line was originally built between 1879 and 1881; however, as traffic increased, the city of Minneapolis mandated a trench be built between Hiawatha and Irving avenues in 1910. The trench, bridges, and retaining walls were evaluated in 1989 as part of the Reinforced-Concrete Highway Bridges in Minnesota MPS
Reinforced-Concrete Highway Bridges in Minnesota MPS
Reinforced-Concrete Highway Bridges in Minnesota MPS is a Multiple Property Submission of bridges listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota. The submission includes 20 individual bridges. It also includes the Chicago, Milwaukee and St...
and then listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad Grade Separation. In 1993, the railroad property was purchased by the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority.
Phase One of the Greenway opened in August 2000, starting at the intersection of 31st Street and Chowen Avenue, just inside Minneapolis city limits. Running between Lake of the Isles
Lake of the Isles
Lake of the Isles is a lake in Minneapolis, Minnesota connected to Cedar Lake and Lake Calhoun. It is home to winter ice skating and hockey, as well as a New Year's Eve celebration featuring roasted marshmallows and hot chocolate...
and Lake Calhoun
Lake Calhoun
Lake Calhoun is the biggest lake in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and part of the city's Chain of Lakes. Surrounded by city park land and circled by bike and walking trails, it is popular for many outdoor activities...
, the Greenway enters the 29th Street trench near Hennepin Avenue. Phase Two opened in November 2004, running from 5th Avenue to Hiawatha Avenue. The rest of the Greenway to the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
opened as Phase Three in September 2006. In fall of 2007, the new Martin Olav Sabo Bridge
Martin Olav Sabo Bridge
The Martin Olav Sabo Bridge is a bridge in the city of Minneapolis and the first cable-stayed suspension bridge in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Formerly, the Midtown Greenway Pedestrian Bridge, it was renamed in honor of former Representative Martin Olav Sabo, a fourteen-term member of Congress...
was opened by Hennepin County and the city as Phase Four, eliminating a dangerous at-grade crossing
At-grade intersection
An at-grade intersection is a junction at which two or more transport axes cross at the same level .-Traffic management:With areas of high or fast traffic, an at-grade intersection normally requires a traffic control device such as a stop sign, traffic light or railway signal to manage conflicting...
at seven-lane Hiawatha Avenue.
Today
The Greenway consists of two one-way bike lanes and one two-way walking path, though they are combined in some places with space constrictions. Because of the historic nature of the corridor, it cannot easily be widened or modified.To the west the Greenway connects directly to the Southwest LRT Trail
Southwest LRT Trail
The Southwest LRT Trail is a system of bicycle trails that extends through several western suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota. They are operated by the Three Rivers Park District....
, named after the future Southwest Corridor with which it will share right-of-way. It also connects to the Kenilworth Trail (which in turn connects to the Cedar Lake Trail
Cedar Lake Trail
The Cedar Lake Regional Trail is America's first bicycle freeway. It is a rail trail that runs about from downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota west to Minnesota State Highway 100 in the neighboring suburb of St. Louis Park. The trail was inaugurated on February 17, 1995. At the trail's west end,...
) providing access to downtown Minneapolis and the western suburbs. To the east, the Greenway connects to West River Parkway, a part of the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway
Grand Rounds Scenic Byway
The Grand Rounds Scenic Byway is a linked series of park areas in Minneapolis, Minnesota that takes a roughly circular path through the city. The corridors include roads for automobile traffic plus paths for pedestrians and bicycles, and extend slightly into neighboring cities...
. In between, there is access to the Chain of Lakes
Chain of Lakes (Minneapolis)
The Chain of Lakes is a district in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is one of seven districts that make up the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway, a greenspace circling through the city...
, as well as the Light Rail Trail, connecting the Greenway to the Downtown East
Downtown East, Minneapolis
Downtown East is an official neighborhood in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States part of the larger Central community. Its boundaries are the Mississippi River to the north, Interstate 35W to the east, 5th Street South to the south, and Portland Avenue to the west. It is bounded by the Downtown...
community.
The Freewheel Bike Center, consisting of a bike store and repair shop, as well as shower and locker facilities, opened in May 2008 at the Midtown Exchange
Midtown Exchange
The Midtown Exchange is a large commercial building located in the Phillips community of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It is the second-largest building in Minnesota in terms of leasable space, after the Mall of America. It was built in 1928 as a retail and mail-order catalog facility for...
near where the Greenway intersects Chicago Avenue.
Bike traffic on the Greenway has jumped 30% in 2008 over ridership counts from 2007.
Future
- See also: Minneapolis Streetcar SystemMinneapolis Streetcar SystemThe Minneapolis Streetcar System is a proposed streetcar system for the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Extensive studies and plans for the new system were completed in 2007 and presented to the Minneapolis City Council in January 2008; on April 2, 2010, the Council voted to approve the plans and...
A fifth phase, which would carry cyclists across the Mississippi River, has an undetermined completion date. Planners hoped to use the Short Line Bridge
Short Line Bridge
The Short Line Bridge is a truss bridge that spans the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was originally built in the 1880s and upgraded a few years later by Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad and was designed by American Bridge Company.The bridge is entirely within...
to St. Paul, though the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
(successor to Milwaukee Road) has not been receptive to the proposal. In addition, engineers have expressed concerns over the safety of the bridge.
Using part of the Greenway right-of-way for mass transit is also under consideration and has the support of the Greenway Coalition, using either streetcar or light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
technology.