Saint Paul Women on Bikes with Stephanie Weir

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The podcast this week is a conversation with Stephanie Weir, the organizer for Women on Bikes Saint Paul, a new advocacy group whose mission is pretty self explanatory. Stephanie is spearheading efforts to increase the role of women bicycling in Saint Paul, and we sat down today in the waiting room of the Union Depot to talk about the new group, why there’s a need to pay more attention to gender issues in the bicycling advocacy community, and what the future of Saint Paul could look like if we begin designing streets with women and families in mind. [Audio below] Continue Reading

Minnesota needs a “No New Roads” pledge

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On a slow afternoon a few weeks back, I found myself in the Union Depot in downtown Saint Paul, walking into a “Minnesota Go” event. Minnesota Go is the joint PR campaign put on by MN-DOT and the Met Council tasked with raising awareness of transportation funding shortfall before the 2014 legislative session. MN-DOT head Zelle and Met Council Chair Haigh have been touring the state presenting their respective powerpoints to members of the public, business leaders, and the media. Continue Reading

Tax-cut urbanism: A thought experiment

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The holiday season is a magical time. Conspicuous consumption, massive hangovers, and repeated family dinners where people pretend they like one another. For me, it’s also one of the one or two annual moments where I get to argue with my conservative, talk radio addled cousins about politics. And this magical year, after a few beers and a rousing game of Scrabble (I won, with a bingo on my first move), I got to argue with them about transportation. Continue Reading

Saint Paul trending with Mayor Chris Coleman and Councilmember Dave Thune

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The podcast this week is a pair of conversations about Saint Paul, Minnesota’s capitol city. The first is with Saint Paul’s very own mayor, Chris Coleman, about his development and transportation plans for his upcoming term. Coleman was handily re-elected last month, and we chatted about the long list of exciting projects going up in the city, his vision for bikes and rail, and the need for equity across the city. Continue Reading

Minnesota’s exceptional climate: An interview with climate scientist and storm chaser Kenny Blumenfeld

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The podcast this week is a conversation with Kenny Blumenfeld, a writer, storm chaser, and climate scientist who has taught meteorology and geography at the University of Minnesota and Metro State University for years. I have had the pleasure of reading Kenny’s semi-fortnightly weather reports, that offer details of weather events while explaining the complex meteorological forces that create them. These days, he’s working on a documentary about winter focused on Minnesota’s changing climate. Check it out! Continue Reading

Saint Paul hits the streetcar sweetspot

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Saint Paul is planning to build a streetcar! This week the city announced its plans for its first “starter line”, which would run down East 7th Street from Arcade, somehow get through downtown Saint Paul (route unspecified), and end up on West 7th all the way to Randolph. It’s approximately 4 miles long, would cost approximately $250M ($60M/mile) and is projected to spur $140M in development (though I believe that’s a low estimate) while improving transit and walkabilty in downtown and two important neighborhoods. Continue Reading