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This research looks at bicycle transportation, particularly bicycle commuting, in three North American cities with extensive bicycling activity and programs: Madison, Wisconsin; Boulder, Colorado; and Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The study describes bicycle transportation in these cities to gain ideas for further improvements in Minnesota bicycle transportation. Madison, Boulder, and Toronto share a reputation for high levels of bicycling activity. Each city plans for additions to its extensive system of bike paths and bike lanes. Wisconsin's state plan calls for an interconnected transportation system across government boundaries and jurisdictions and completed a Wisconsin Bicycle Transportation Plan in 1998. Boulder completed a Bicycle System Plan in 1996 as part of its Transportation Master Plan Update for the Boulder Valley. It, too, addresses the need to develop a continuous and well-connected provincial government of Ontario recently amalgamated the six municipal governments in the Toronto metro area to form The New City of Toronto, and the new city is now working on a new bicycle plan. A City Cycling Committee, a committee of the city council, looks at programs to increase the quantity and quality of bicycle trips in Toronto. The three cities also have developed public initiatives to promote bicycling, including bike-to-work events, free bike programs, and awards programs. All three cities publish extensive information about bicycling programs and issues on the Internet. Internet sites include official city sites, sites managed by independent organizations and individual bike activists, and electronic newsletters.

The goal of the Minnesota State Bicycle Transportation System Plan is to develop and coordinate a safe and efficient bicycle transportation network along Trunk Highway corridors which will accommodate the utilitarian and recreational bicycling needs of the state's citizens and its visitors. Trunk Highways comprising the System Plan were determined based upon fundamental criteria including: 1) Major connections with cities of 5,000 population and over and the Twin Cities Metropolitan area; 2) Major links with cities of 5,000 population and over within a 25 mile radius of each other; 3) Major links with cities of 5/000 population and over with state parks, recreational areas/ and significant natural features of the state; 4) Major links with adjoining states; and 5) District identified local needs on the Trunk Highway system. The plan identifies unsuitable (poor or unsatisfactory) segments within each corridor and evaluates bicycling conditions. A design or alternate route recommendation is made which will bring the roadway up to at least a "Fair" bikeway rating. These needs and recommended designs can be used as roadways undergo study for improvement. Segments have been prioritized based upon established criteria to assist in this process. The plan has identified 4,467 miles of Trunk Highway bikeway corridors. Approximately 1/700 miles of these corridors need bikeway improvements. Based upon standard design and construction procedures, a preliminary estimate of the cost for improving these segments has been developed.

To improve the visibility and safety of pedestrian and bicyclist crossings, traffic-safety professionals across Minnesota have installed the Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) and Pedestrian Hybrid Beacon (PHB) at numerous locations around the state. The purpose of this evaluation was to determine the safety benefits, if any, for pedestrians and bicyclists after installation of an RRFB or PHB. This report included a before-after analysis as well as a cross-sectional analysis for each type of beacon with a corresponding group of comparison sites. The before-after analysis found that installation of an RRFB resulted in a 67% decrease in fatal crashes and a 62% decrease in bicyclist crashes. Installation of a PHB resulted in a 53% decrease in suspected minor injury crashes, a 67% decrease in pedestrians crashes, and a 50% decrease in bicyclist crashes. The results of the cross-sectional analysis did not indicate that these reductions were statistically significant compared to similar reductions in the control group. Still, the decreases in severe crashes and crashes involving non-motorists at RRFBs and PHBs indicated that both types of beacons could be effective safety treatments.

In order to increase the mileage of public roads that provide an acceptable level of service with available funds and to maximize fully the value of existing roadways for bicyclists, Mn/DOT has adopted bikeway design standards. Because more flexibility is provided, these standards will permit improvements to be made which will result in greater uniformity of highway geometries over major lengths of roadway. These standards are based on the relationship between the characteristics of the road design (bicycle driving area) to the average daily motorized traffic. Although these bikeway standards have been developed and should be used to the maximum extent possible, as with most engineering projects, the designer should use engineering judgement in the application of the standards.

This project provides a statistically defensible estimate of bicycle-miles of travel (BMT) for at least a substantial portion of the Twin Cities region and assesses the feasibility of monitoring bicycle volumes using sampling methods similar to those used to monitor motor vehicle traffic. Researchers used an ArcView database of the Twin Cities street system for the initial sampling frame and extended the database by manually adding information about average annual daily traffic volumes and about on- and off-road bicycle facilities. A stratified random sample of roadways links in Hennepin, Ramsey, and Dakota counties was drawn, and during the months of May through June and August through October 1998, the daytime bicycle volume for one day at each sampled site was obtained using time-lapse video. Researchers then used Cochrane's combined estimator to compute an estimate of average daytime BMT for the study area. Findings show that monitoring bicycle miles of travel using methods similar to those employed for vehicle miles of travel is now technically feasible in the Twin Cities region where several permanent counters on bicycle trails provide a rudimentary continuous count element. A video-based approach appears to be more accurate and less demanding of personnel than is on-site manual counting.

This report describes a system for monitoring bicycle activity in sequences of gray scale images from a stationary camera. Applications for such a system include determining the use and congestion of bicycle paths. The output of the system is a count of the number of bicycles detected in the image sequence. The system uses a simple model of two circular objects separated by relatively known distance, with four levels of abstraction: raw images, blobs, edge images, and the bicycle model. The system was implemented on a dual Pentium computer equipped with a Matrox imaging board and achieved a peak performance of eight frames per second. Experimental results based on outdoor scenes show promising results for a variety of weather conditions.

This report 1) describes the potential for improving bicycle transportation in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, 2) identifies the common barriers and limitations to bike transportation as described by metro area transportation officials and bicycle advocates, and 3) provides an overview of the organizations involved. The cities of Boulder, Colorado; Madison, Wisconsin; and Toronto, Ontario, Canada have built reputations for being bicycle friendly and were reviewed to provide examples of innovative bicycle programs. This guide serves as a starting point in describing bicycle transportation in the Twin Cities metropolitan area. Management of the transportation system in the Twin Cities metropolitan area is based on a multi-agency, regional approach. The Metropolitan Council, the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the counties and the cities all have responsibilities related to transportation in their jurisdictions. Important areas for development in order to make bicycling a viable transportation choice include: bike facilities, leadership, communication, planning, networks, research, measurement, partnerships, funding, information sharing, and customer needs.

The front side of "Explore Minnesota Bikeways: Map E - Metro Southwest" contains the map index a list of county and municipal parks bicycling safety tips and a "potpourri" article with illustrations of the Chanhassen Town Hall and Trinity Episcopal Chapel in Excelsior. The back side contains a legend of signs and symbols and the larger bikeways map. MnDOT's bikeway maps serve as a reference guide illustrating major historical and cultural points of interest in Minnesota, public park lands and facilities, equipment, and safety information. They also depict road analyses for bicycle travel, location of paved road shoulders and off-road bikeways, and controlled access roads where bicycles are prohibited. There are 54 maps in the Statewide Series (1979-1983), 4 maps in the Statewide Quadrant Series (1986-1993), and 2 maps in the Metro Series (1989). Legislatively mandated, these maps were prepared as convenient guides to help bicyclists select their routes. Each map is unique and signifies a historical reference to the state of bicycle facilities at the time of publication.

The front side of "Explore Minnesota Bikeways: Map H - Metro South" contains the map index, a list of county and municipal parks, bicycling safety tips, and a "potpourri" article with illustrations of the Bailiff House in Bloomington and the Bloomington Historical Society's Old Town Hall Museum. The back side contains a legend of signs and symbols and the larger map. MnDOT's bikeway maps serve as a reference guide illustrating major historical and cultural points of interest in Minnesota, public park lands and facilities, equipment, and safety information. They also depict road analyses for bicycle travel, location of paved road shoulders and off-road bikeways, and controlled access roads where bicycles are prohibited. There are 54 maps in the Statewide Series (1979-1983), 4 maps in the Statewide Quadrant Series (1986-1993), and 2 maps in the Metro Series (1989). Legislatively mandated, these maps were prepared as convenient guides to help bicyclists select their routes. Each map is unique and signifies a historical reference to the state of bicycle facilities at the time of publication.

The front side of "Explore Minnesota Bikeways: Northeast" contains: inset maps of Duluth, Cloquet, Hibbing, Virginia, International Falls, and Brainerd; illustrations of the Gunflint Trail Tour Route, Iron Range Tour Route, and Duluth to Two Harbors Tour; a checklist of touring supplies with a diagram of where to put supplies on a bike; and bicycling safety tips. The back side contains the larger bikeways map, legend, and a list of Minnesota bicycle laws. MnDOT's bikeway maps serve as a reference guide illustrating major historical and cultural points of interest in Minnesota, public park lands and facilities, equipment, and safety information. They also depict road analyses for bicycle travel, location of paved road shoulders and off-road bikeways, and controlled access roads where bicycles are prohibited. There are 54 maps in the Statewide Series (1979-1983), 4 maps in the Statewide Quadrant Series (1986-1993), and 2 maps in the Metro Series (1989). Legislatively mandated, these maps were prepared as convenient guides to help bicyclists select their routes. Each map is unique and signifies a historical reference to the state of bicycle facilities at the time of publication.