Street, Road and Highway Projects

[seanrichardryan]

It obviously hasn't been repainted, and this being Minneapolis,they'll get to that just before the plows come out.

[PhilmerPhil]

They were installing the thermoplastic crosswalks across 38th St. today.

[Minneapolisite]

So Nicollet is loose gravel for blocks south of Lake: why do they do this here again? Not exactly crazy about it as a cyclist and found it strange first moving here, because where I'm from they never do that treatment: they patch or repave. Bike-unfriendly as it was/is I much prefer not having to deal with mounds of loose gravel piled up around intersections, let alone when trucks and buses kick up those dirty clouds right next to the outdoor patios.

[seanrichardryan]

It a sealcoating and its a necessary inconvenience for about a week.

[Tcmetro]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asphalt_sealcoating

Basically it extends the life of the street, saving public works dollars.

[Minneapolisite]

Hey, I'm just saying there are cities that don't do this and some are much more car-oriented. Too bad it can't be used as an excuse to close the streets off to motorized traffic. I'd feel safer not having cars ride my ass on these streets is all.

[grant1simons2]

[David Greene]

Appropriate.

[maxbaby]

Not to offend anybody out there but the roads were built for cars not bikes. The gas taxes and license tab fees go towards building and maintaining these roads for cars not bikes. Maybe bikes should have little license plates to help out. . Again I have nothing against cyclists but I do believe they should help pay the bills if our roads are going to be partially converted for bike lanes. OK let the critique begin.

[acs]

Please remind me how my street, which has been around since the founding of the city in 1867, was built for cars when Henry Ford was 4 years old.

[maxbaby]

Seriously? I guess every street in the cities that was built around 1867 and later were constructed with the idea of bikes in mind. That is why they are so wide. Just in case they wanted 10 bike lanes. I'm sure they were built with the intent of horse drawn carriages but as with just about everything it evolves and technology develops like um cars. Motorcycles are I'm sure an idea from the invention of the bicycle but the difference between the two cycles is that the latter pays gas taxes and license fees. So excuse me for saying they were built for "cars". All I'm saying is that bicyclists should pay their fair share. I have a bike and if I was required to have a plate on my bike I would be more that happy to pay a fee. I have no problem doing my fair share.

[Anondson]

Every single street in my neighborhood in Hopkins was reconstructed last year. I guarantee you not a single dime of it was paid for with gas taxes. The entirety has been paid for from property taxes. I know it because it has an extra assessment on my property taxes from the city they we will be paying on for the next 15 years to pay off the bonds the city used for the 2 block long by 4 block wide neighborhood.

[VAStationDude]

Bicycles infrastructure costs are a rounding error in the overall cost of our transportation system - like a percentage point. I pay for bike infrastructure through property tax, just like how I pay for most of the roads I drive on. Biking also has positive externalities. I won't develop diabetes or arthritis when I'm fifty and my sixteen pound bike causes practically zero wear and tear on the road.

The idea of creating an entire new licensing and revenue collection scheme for bikes is really a horrific idea. The administrative and enforcement costs would be a huge chunk of the revenue generated. What's wrong with relying on our current, paid for, taxing mechanisms?

[froggie]

Not to offend anybody out there but the roads were built for cars not bikes. The gas taxes and license tab fees go towards building and maintaining these roads for cars not bikes.

The vast bulk of the gas tax and license tab fees go to maintaining state and county highways, not city streets. While it's possible that Minneapolis got some municipal state aid street funding for this, that's usually for construction and reconstruction. This was strictly a maintenance job, so most likely it was paid for out of city funds...i.e. sales and property taxes.

[beauss]

Hey, I'm just saying there are cities that don't do this and some are much more car-oriented. Too bad it can't be used as an excuse to close the streets off to motorized traffic. I'd feel safer not having cars ride my ass on these streets is all.

The traffic is what compacts the surface. Once a person has lived here long enough to see how well patches hold up through Minnesota winters, they find sealcoating season a lot more tolerable.

[Anondson]

Once a person has lived here long enough to see how well patches hold up through Minnesota winters, they find sealcoating season a lot more tolerable.

-1

I've found myself looking forward to a sealcoat season for some residential streets that have had more than a few patches and sewer line repairs.

[twincitizen]

It a sealcoating and its a necessary inconvenience for about a week.

Nicollet from Lake to 40th just reconstructed 2012-2013. What gives with the sealcoating? Is that normally done just 1-2 years after construction? It seems odd...

Seal coat info: http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/cip/all/WCMS1P-121589

[Tcmetro]

It seems they usually do a sealcoating soon after reconstructing streets. I would imagine that the idea that it is easier to do another sealcoat when the old one wears off rather than letting the elements destroy the pavement and require a re-paving.

[talindsay]

You can tell people who don't own property because they aren't aware of how much we pay for with property taxes. Most streets are paid for directly by homeowners and indirectly by renters, with no consideration for whether or not they own or drive a car.

[go4guy]

Car traffic is necessary for the sealant process to work properly.

Yes, all roads were built with cars in mind. Otherwise they would still just be dirt or gravel with ruts for the carriages.

Saying cars should be taken off the roads because you dont like the traffic interfering with your bike ride is beyond selfish. Sorry a nice beautiful road was built that you are able to easily use. Sorry for the convenience provided to you.