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HomeMy WebLinkAbout50thFrance Bike RacksEdinaTLC City of Edina • 4801 W. 50th St. • Edina, MN 55424 Contact: David Katz, Communications Intern Phone 952-833-9522 • Fax 952-826-0389 • www.EdinaMN.gov Hilary Reeves, Bike Walk Twin Cities Phone 651-767-0298, x115 Sean McDonnell, for Bike Walk Twin Cities Phone 612-889-3297 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 29 New Bike Racks to be Installed at 50th & France Edina, Minn., Sept. 25, 2012 – In the next two weeks, the bicycle parking capacity in downtown Edina at 50th & France will jump by nearly 60 spots. Twenty-nine bike racks, each of which can hold two adult-sized bikes, are currently being installed in seven strategic locations throughout the neighborhood. Racks were also installed recently at 44th & France, Edina City Hall and the Edina Public Works & Park Maintenance Facility. The project was first conceived by the 14-member Bike Edina Task Force, and is now coming to fruition “with financing from a federal non-motorized transportation pilot program known as Bike Walk Twin Cities, through Transit for Livable Communities,” said Public Works Director Brian Olson. The new bike racks will dot both 50th Street and France Avenue South, said Rachel Thelemann, Executive Director of the 50th & France Business & Professional Association. The 29 units are being installed on France outside Cocina del Barrio and Walgreens and on 50th outside College Nannies & Tutors, D’Amico & Sons, Edina Liquor, Lunds and Lush Cosmetics. The 50th & France neighborhood contains several preexisting racks, but the new additions will do much to alleviate traffic congestion in the area. “Biking is another mode of transportation; any time a bike gets ridden to work, it frees up a parking space in the ramps,” Olson said. “We have been trying for some time to retain more bike racks at 50th & France,” Thelemann said. “We want visitors and employees in the area to be able to walk, bike or drive to the area and spend the day. On any given Saturday, you see lots of bicyclists in the area, so these extra racks will be wonderful for the neighborhood, shoppers and employees. We are just thrilled!” Brad Schaeppi, a member of the Bike Edina Task Force, is excited to see his organization’s years of work on bicycling expansion in Edina become a reality. “Between the enhancement of Edina roadways for bicycling and the city’s new bike racks, this is truly a watershed year in Edina,” he said. “This is a great win for our community and residents, to enhance our overall quality of life.” The new bike racks stand about three feet high, and are colored to match the décor of the area. Less than two inches in thickness, the racks accommodate standard U-style bike locks. Edina’s bike expansion effort is funded in part by Bike Walk Twin Cities, a program of Transit for Livable Communities. In addition to adding bike racks, the expansion will triple the number of City streets with bicycle facilities from 4 to 12. Improvements to three of Edina’s most popular bike routes – on 54th Street, Wooddale Avenue and Valley View Road – will provide key north-south connections within the community and a vital east-west connection into Minneapolis. City of Edina • 4801 W. 50th St. • Edina, MN 55424 For more information on the City projects, contact the City of Edina Engineering Department at 952-826-0371 or visit www.EdinaMN.gov/Engineering. For more information about Bike Walk Twin Cities, visit www.bikewalktwincities.org. For more information on the Bike Edina Task Force’s mission and initiatives, visit bikeedina.org. -30- About Bike Walk Twin Cities The Twin Cities is one of four U.S. communities to receive $28 million through the federal Nonmotorized Transportation Pilot Program to enhance bicycling and walking as transportation and to improve health, community livability, and air quality. Beginning in 2007, the Bike Walk Twin Cities (BWTC) pilot program allocated funding to expand the network of bicycle routes (more than 75 miles of new bike lanes and sidewalks), to innovative ways to increase access to bicycles for transportation (e.g., Nice Ride Minnesota and the Cycles for Change Community Partners Bike Library), and to education, outreach, planning, and measurement. The Twin Cities area count of bicycling and walking, conducted with several local partners and volunteers, is one of the largest counting efforts in the nation. BWTC, along with the other pilot program locations, is working with the US DOT to establish protocols for measuring nonmotorized transportation in ways that are comparable to other transportation modes. Bike Walk Twin Cities count data shows that bicycling increased 52 percent and walking 18 percent between 2007-2011. The Bike Walk Twin Cities pilot program is administered by Transit for Livable Communities, a nonprofit organization focused on increasing transportation options for Minnesotans. To learn more about BWTC, go to www.bikewalktwincities.org.