
Bus-only shoulders move you past congestion - mhlakhani
http://www.metrotransit.org/transit-advantages.aspx
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ClassicFarris
Combined with being a bike friendly city, (googling "best bike cities usa"
brought up the city in the top 10 of every list). It seems like Minneapolis is
doing commuting right. I wonder if there are any studies around the "quality"
of the different commutes a city can have? Meaning does it matter that people
can Drive, Bus or Bike to work in some very good conditions… or it doesn't
matter; because most people think any commute sucks?

Now about those winters...

~~~
at-fates-hands
>>> Now about those winters...

I actually live on the outskirts of Minneapolis and all the bike trails are
usually plowed clean before most of the streets. The bike paths are used year
round and the cities work together to make sure they stay clear, even during
snowstorms.

I have several co-workers who ride year round and swear they've never had to
ride on a trail with a ton of snow.

And besides, all you have to do now is strap on your FAT tires and you're
good!

[http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-04P3j7-1VkY/TyjLZ2MPIcI/AAAAAAAAGO...](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-04P3j7-1VkY/TyjLZ2MPIcI/AAAAAAAAGOQ/oz6J3pUxj7M/s1600/snow_bikes_cs.jpg)

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timrosenblatt
The Minnesota DOT is phenomenally good. Years ago I started a company around
road safety products in construction zones (those places are surprisingly
dangerous, slow down!). There was a lot of great work and research being put
out by MnDOT. Very pleased to see they're continuing with novel ideas.

~~~
agavegoose
Agreed! Another super cool 'innovation' I have only seen signs for in MN -
[http://www.dot.state.mn.us/zippermerge/](http://www.dot.state.mn.us/zippermerge/)
more coverage: [http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2014/05/the-zipper-
merge-...](http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2014/05/the-zipper-merge-
convincing-motorists-isnt-a-snap.html)

~~~
timrosenblatt
Very cool! I remember reading about this before. It seems like a weird concept
and makes some people mad, but it's real.

If you like reading and have ever spent more than an hour or two thinking
about traffic and American car culture, consider reading this
[http://www.amazon.com/Traffic-Drive-What-Says-
About/dp/03072...](http://www.amazon.com/Traffic-Drive-What-Says-
About/dp/0307277194)

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mproud
The Twin Cities had a lot of catching up to do with transit, and only recently
have we started to see the fruits of our labors.

Both Minneapolis and St. Paul used to have very active streetcar systems
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_City_Rapid_Transit_Compan...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_City_Rapid_Transit_Company))
in the first half of the 20th century, all of which were dismantled when they
fell victim to politics and hostile tactics by the oil and auto industries.
Unlike Chicago, for example, the Twin Cities have no subway or elevated train
system — busing has been the only form of public transit for 50 years. (I
think that might explain the article.) Only in the last 10 years have we seen
light rail, bus rapid transit and commuter trains. (In fact, like him or not,
former governor Jesse Ventura played a significant part in getting the Blue
Line built, the first light rail transit in the Twin Cities.)

As others mentioned, cycling turns out to be a decent alternative for
commuting. The area has an excellent park system (which is part of the reason
why the Twin Cities ranks at the top of livability indexes) and this has
benefited cyclists, as almost all park and waterfronts are interconnected by
separated bicycle paths. Buses and light rail are outfitted with bike racks,
making it easier getting about.

Despite all this, the larger metropolitan area is still one of the least dense
in the nation, much of it brought on by significant urban sprawl in the 1990s.
A car is still practically a necessity, especially if you live further out
than the first-ring suburbs.

Still, we’re seeing positive change. We have a huge apartment boom going on,
with a scary low vacancy rate. The population of people living in downtown
Minneapolis has grown from almost nothing 20 years ago to over 30,000 people
today. And with more people living in the city, particularly in projects built
next to the light rail, this means more are utilizing public transit — each
public transit addition in the last 10 years has been a success, which has
fueled future projects (you could argue the North Star commuter rail has
underperformed). The Green Line
([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/METRO_Green_Line](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/METRO_Green_Line)),
which opened only 6 weeks ago _finally_ connects the downtowns of Minneapolis
and St. Paul via light rail. And it looks like the Southwest Corridor is going
to happen, too.

~~~
evgen
Please stop perpetuating the bogus "oil/gas/auto companies killed the
streetcars" myth. Streetcars/trams/light-rail is always a bad idea unless it
is segregated from regular traffic and even in that case it still loses to
several alternatives. Every possible justification for this form of public
transit died by the middle of the 20th century. The only reason for such
systems now is to amuse tourists.

~~~
mproud
Really? Then you don’t know about National City Lines
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_City_Lines](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_City_Lines)).
They were indicted in 1947 on charges of conspiring to acquire control of a
number of transit companies, and of forming a transportation monopoly to
control sales.
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_City_Lines#cite_note-...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_City_Lines#cite_note-
para1-12)) GM, Firestone, Standard Oil and others were involved.

~~~
hapless
A conspiracy to control sales _of busses._

Every transit agency in the country was _already_ investigating busses to
replace street-level rail and trolley-bus systems. Lower costs (both up front
and operating), greater route flexibility, and new capabilities seemed like a
slam dunk.

The "conspiracy" was an attempt to corner the market on the already-inevitable
replacement of legacy non-rapid transit systems. The conspirators were willing
to spend a good deal of money to make certain that transit groups would buy GM
buses with Firestone tires, not Ford and Michelin.

~~~
mproud
I don’t buy it. NCL, incorporated in Delaware, was a holding company which
took over 46 transit systems in 16 states. Doesn’t sound like flowers and
bunnies to me.

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gioele
What is the difference between bus-only shoulders and the bus/taxi reserved
lanes commonly found around Europe?

~~~
bryanlarsen
Shoulders are primarily a safety mechanism. They're a place which is almost
always empty; you can swerve onto them to avoid a collision.

This safety mechanism is not required when traffic is congested and moving
slowly. Thus Minnesota can allow buses to use the shoulder when traffic is
moving slowly without compromising the safety benefits of the shoulder.

~~~
josh-wrale
I've witnessed more than a few vehicles overheating in slow moving traffic.
Many of drivers of these use the shoulder as a way of removing their vehicle
from the main corridor. Another primary use for the shoulder is emergency
vehicles. Any vehicle on the shoulder, moving or not, is likely to slow
emergency responders. Make sure to look before you swerve, as many a highway
patrol person has been killed this way.

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leeoniya
i believe we have something like this in Chicago, also.

here we go:
[http://www.pacebus.com/sub/vision2020/expressway_brt.asp](http://www.pacebus.com/sub/vision2020/expressway_brt.asp)

