If people want more highway capacity, they can build it in their neighborhoods, not mine.Very good point Chris.
99.9% of the Crosstown commons traffic is not destined for or originating in southwest Minneapolis and northern Richfield. 95% of that traffic is not destined for or coming from Minneapolis at all.
When one is driving north on 35W and comes to the downtown and 94 exits, the vast majority of the traffic takes 94 or stays on 35W -- it is not going to Minneapolis, even during morning rush hour.
The point being -- don't let anyone ever try to sell you on the idea that a new lane or ramp here or there on the Crosstown, 35W or 94 is for the benefit of Minneapolis, or will even benefit Minneapolis. It's virtually all for the benefit of suburban commuters.
That's always been my feeling. It seemed really clear from this article, is this design is dependent on future capacity increases on 35W. Expanding capacity on 35W and 94 going through the city will just draw more beltway bypass traffic to go through the city.
Seems like this would be a great topic for the pretty much dead twin cities metro list.
http://www.e-democracy.org/tcmetro/
I hate the congestion on the Crosstown when I want to go someplace. I live with it and work around it. Build more lanes and more traffic will come. So it has always been and will always be.
I don't find congestion on Crosstown to be a major problem except during Rushhours. But then I don't live and work in a place where I have to use the Crosstown regularly.
More property takings in Minneapolis for freeway projects just increase property taxes for everyone else - and it's a permanent increase.
David Piehl writes:
The article suggests that if this design goes forward, there will be more of a push to make 35W five lanes in both directions from 46th St to downtown.
When the last major I35W Expansion plan was iced in the early 1990's, the city of Minneapolis came to agreement with MNDoT that light rail would eventually be developed in the I-35W corridor instead of additional lanes. As noted in the following excerpts from a recent Star Tribune article, it would seem that the success MNDoT has had including expansion in the Access Project has encouraged them to accelerate adding a plan to add lanes, making I35W a 10-lane highway. Here's the quote:
http://www.startribune.com/stories/462/4198539.html Extending the fifth lane on 35W toward downtown is now scheduled for 2015 or later, but it's being considered for potential advancement if new funding is available, O'Keefe said.
Even if northbound I-35W is widened to five lanes, the junction of I-35W and I-94 near downtown Minneapolis will remain jammed. MnDOT is not even discussing improvements there, and that means that congestion is likely to filter back through south Minneapolis from that constriction.
EY: Where is Mayor RT Rybak on this part of the proposal. Rybak was supportive of the Excess Project including the flyover lane. What is Rybak's position on 35W becoming a 10 lane highway?
On this:
> (I'm not the only E Democracy list manager or former list manager > who has posted to E Democracy lists under nom de plumes).
Just so no one is misled: I have never posted to the Mpls-Issues list under a fake name, nor have list managers of other E-Dem sites.
EY: David Brauer was not who I was referring to. Mick Souder VP of E Democracy used to post to mn-politics under a fake name. He acknowledged this during a conference call training list managers, Terrell Brown, Eva Young and Duane Quam for MPD. Mick Souder has been the list manager for MN Politics - and was list manager for that list when he posted under the nom de plume.
Still folks - I do agree with this rule for E Democracy lists and I shouldn't have posted here under a nom de plume.
Eva Young
Near North
Minneapolis
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Blog is up:
http://lloydletta.blogspot.com
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