All in Transportation
I worked in Lubbock, Texas for just over a year when I first started out in planning and recently have been working on a plan for Kermit, Texas, taking me back to the oil fields. Lubbock did not have many operating pump jacks, but nonetheless one of my tasks while there was to map the locations of existing and capped oil wells. Kermit on the other hand is surrounded by oil fields that have a major impact on their community.
The Cost of Driving to Work
This past week we saw temperatures hitting 50 degrees, an incredible gift for January in Nebraska. This also meant the snow was completely melted, making biking an option I would consider. I did take advantage last Saturday with a bike ride up to Benson for some lunch at 1912 and a visit to Infusion Brewing Co. When the weather is nice and I can get to places via biking or walking I tend to get out and explore more.
What I Learned From Minneapolis
I have lived in several cities in the past five years including Lubbock, Texas, Rochester and Columbia Heights, Minnesota, and most recently Minneapolis. Each city has imparted some lasting impressions and I taught me invaluable lessons about how cities function. But of all the cities, Minneapolis has taught me the most. Before I moved to the Twin Cities metro, I had never taken public transit as a commuter, biked to work regardless of the weather, composted, or installed a rain barrel.
The Bird Is The Word
Everybody’s heard the Bird if you live in one of the major metro areas that are fortunate, or unfortunate depending on who you ask, to have these electric scooters. The Bird company started in California in 2017, but since its March test run in San Francisco has grown exponentially to include several dozen cities throughout the U.S. But the Bird is just one of several scooter companies capitalizing on the new trend. There are scooter companies operating in 65 cities throughout the country not to mention dozens of scooters that can be purchased for us directly by the consumer.
Gruen's Grand Plan
A recent newspaper article about the ABC parking ramps in downtown Minneapolis made reference to the Gruen Plan in Fort Worth, Texas. The brief description outlined Gruen's proposed ban on all cars from downtown Fort Worth to provide a better pedestrian experience and revitalize the area. Having lived in Texas for a few years, I found this a radical idea for the city, especially because it was a plan derived in 1959, a time when the car was king. Intrigued by this reference, I decided to delve deeper.
Complete Streets in Action
We have all driven, biked, or walked down a street that appeared wider than the traffic it served. Extra space proliferates within the area for vehicles while the pedestrian and bicyclist are forced onto a small, cracked sidewalk or into the street dodging parked cars. We constantly wonder why the road could not be redesigned to accommodate a better distribution of users. Some cities have begun to make a commitment to changing these conditions through a program called Complete Streets.
Heading Out West on I-80
From my last post you saw I went home last weekend to visit family. My husband and I make the six hour drive five to six times a year and have the route memorized down to which towns we stop in. We were able to leave by 10 am, after Minneapolis morning rush hours and before Omaha's evening rush hours. I say hours because it is no longer one annoying hour but about three. Leaving during these times can add almost forty-five minutes to our already long drive.
The City in 6 Miles
I am a runner. It began as a way to stay in shape, but I have realized I can use my running to learn from cities. The past few years I moved often, following my career from one planning job to the next. I'm a Nebraska native, but moved to Lubbock, Texas, after finishing college. After a few years I moved to Rochester, Minnesota to be closer to home, but desiring an urban environment I now live in the Twin Cities metro. Each new city has taught me invaluable lessons about how they function and how regions differ.