(11/14/02)

I strongly believe that the Highway 55 Speed Limit should be at least 50 m.p.h. This is a major trafficway into downtown Minneapolis and is not a residential street.

Traffic congestion in the metropolitan area is getting worse and restricting speed on 55 does not make any sense. I have read the October 7, 2002 letter from Carol Kummer (Chair of the Light Rail) to the Minnesota Department of Transportation and was appalled.

The Highway 55 corridor will never be a pedestrian friendly area. Why would someone want to walk along a train track and highway? I love to walk but prefer scenic areas.

Speed bumps at Hwy 55 intersections would be insane.

I vote in every election and try to learn about the issues, but I just found out about the above situation. I strongly support increasing the speed limit to at least 50 m.p.h.
- Karla K. Wagner
Nokomis Resident

Top of page

(11/14/02)

The letter from Carol Kummer to the MnDOT is excellent and reflects the sentiments of many Longfellow neighborhood residents. [See the letter]

A few additional comments to NENA's argument:
1. Increased traffic speeds mean more noise. Increased speed limits will syphon more traffic off of the interstates, which means even more noise. Our neighborhoods bear a significant burden of noise from the MSP Airport. For livability, maintaining property values, and attracting development, we need less noise, not more.

2. Increased traffic speeds mean more air pollution. A growing body of studies points to auto and truck exhaust as a significant source of cardiopulmonary ailments, as well as increased cancer risks. These health problems are borne by all of us, but especially by children and the elderly. [Diesel truck exhaust dwarfs the impact gasoline engine exhaust. And undoubtedly, it is business and trucking interests that are lobbying MnDOT for speed increases on 55].

3. Instead of longer walk times at the traffic signals, I would argue for structural changes in the road and curbs that make the distance pedestrians need to walk SHORTER. Combine this with shorter red/green cycle times -- in traditional urban areas, pedestrians and bicyclists never need to wait long for a light to change. Shorter cycles would also temper traffic speeds and dissuade drivers from leaving the interstate.

- Paul Andre, Longfellow Community Environment and Transportation Committee member

[Webmaster's note: Mr. Andre refers to "NENA's argument," above. It should be noted that NENA is simply hosting this discussion for the benefit of all neighborhood residents.]

Top of page

(11/14/02)

Dear neighbors and MnDOT,

I am absolutely opposed to raising the speed limits along Hwy 55. During the open meetings and discussions held a few years back regarding the reroute, our elected officials and representatives from MnDOT continually threw the phrase at us, "this will not be a freeway, the speed limit will be 35 mph, don't worry." When any of us opposing the reroute countered that claim, saying people would go faster anyway, they countered with reassurances that the speed limit of 35 mph would be enforced and held.

The road is not even finished yet and these same elected officials and MnDOT representatives are already backpedaling on their promises. I and many of my neighbors DO NOT want a freeway with speeds in excess of 35mph in our neighborhood!!!!!
- Sue Cairn

Top of page

(11/12/02)

Like it or not, many of us believe Hiawatha can and should sets its speed limits safely at 45 MPH through most if not all of its course in Minneapolis. I'd even support an unspoken, "It's okay to go 55 when conditions are good, but you will get stopped at 56MPH."

With the advent of light rail, this will become a multi-modal corridor. The nature of the parallel right-of-ways presents additional hazards to any who attempt to cross them or enter or exit via the roadway or rail. Pedestrians, bicyclists, and automobiles will all need to pay attention to safety as they cross or access the highway. A uniform increase in the speed limit to 45+, would not significantly raise the level of risk at any authorized intersection.

The roadway clearly can support the faster speed, and frequently does so even with the already posted limits.

One of the benefits of living in our neighborhood, is the speed with which we can get out and about when we want. Quick access to virtually any point in the metro area makes living in the center of the metro worthwhile for many. A quick Hiawatha lends value to those of us who live here. It's not a little thing to trim a few minutes here or there in our busy days. A quick jaunt to downtown or Lake street is not without its merits. A quicker trip does increase traffic demand as it reduces drive time for a broader traffic shed. More people will want to drive on 55 from further away if the speed limit is 45 than will if it is 35.

Some may see less traffic on a slower street as a benefit. Others will see it as an unnecessary obstruction to traffic flow in a metro-wide system that is beginning to show volume strains. Some slow-street proponents may argue against the outsiders, the dreaded evil suburbanites, "Let's keep the speed limit low and slow to discourage them from driving though our neighborhoods." Fast-street people will argue the overview, the regional perspective, "We are the world, we are the metro."

We have infrastructure systems based on logic rather than political whim. However, political whim as reflected by my driving behavior and that of many of my friends and fellow drivers supports a speed limit of 45. At least that's the vote as recorded on many of our speedometers. 35 feels too slow. I suspect that the clear choice of those who actually use the road on a daily basis would be for a 45-55 MPH range.

Some, who may not use the roadway frequently, may not fully appreciate it's value to those who do. Just as we can appreciate and value speed in our computer browsers, we should appreciate the value of speed in communications when expressed in a different medium.

Traffic flow is, in fact, the lifeblood of our society. It is a direct manifestation of our social and cultural interaction as a society. Restricting the blood flow in an artery could lead to a brain hemorrhage, or other dire consequence. Keeping the flow free signifies a healthier system.

The NENA neighborhood's fantastic new web site has started an ongoing discussion of the Highway 55 speed issue in its "Backyard" section. Great website, check it out at http://www.nokomiseast.org
- Earl Netwal
  Near downtown Nokomis Village,
  somewhere in the urban forest,
  within walking range of 55

Top of page

(11/12/02)

I definitely think the speed limit should be raised from 35 to 45-50 from out of downtown down to 31st street, at the very least.

I'm all for transit/pedestrian-oriented development, so slowing the speed back down to 35 after 31st street makes sense to me, as people will be looking at all of the new shops and people walking about at the 38th and 46th Street stations.
-Hillary Olson, Bancroft Neighborhood

Top of page

(11/12/02)

I can't fathom the speed limit of Highway 55 staying at 35 mph. What are these people thinking?

Spending more than 10 minutes of Hwy 55 during rush hour is a cause for legitimate road rage. During rush hours most cars can't even go faster than 35 miles per hour. They must stop at the new light at the VA, 54th St, 50th St, 46st, 42St. I could go on but I hope most people understand my point.

Another aggravation is that none of the lights are timed. I've often traveled this road late at night and have had to stop at a north/south light when there weren't any cars going east or west. The light/timing situation on Hiawatha is maddening. I wonder if the timing of the lights is even a factor for future planning.

I can't imagine that this situation will get any better when they have the light rail gates. I think that once light rail is operating, a majority of people will still want to use Hwy 55 as a major highway in and out of Minneapolis. I don't think that all the commuters should be inconvienced by a lower speed limit, just because someone wants to ride his/her bike or walk across the street.
-Kathleen Larson

Top of page

(11/06/02)

I'm a resident of the Morris Park neighborhood. I bike commute but own a vehicle to get to other destinations. So, I have the perspective of both the pedecyclist and motorist. I must go through Hwy 55 when I bike and drive on it when I take the automobile. I find that the speed limit on hwy 55 is too low.

The main reason I think it's too low is that the road is designed for higher speed traffic. Wide multiple lanes with signalized intersections encourage drivers to speed up as there aren't enough
perceived dangers at low speed. That is why hardly anyone (including myself) drives 35 mph on Hwy 55.

When I bike, I find no problem crossing the hwy because of the signalized intersections. There are walk lights at just about all of them and the signalized intersections are plentiful. I simply wait for the walk symbol and ride on through.

My bigger complaint is that the signalized intersections are not synchronized. There are times where I will get a red at EVERY SINGLE intersection. It takes forever to get anywhere. It is for this reason I usually take Minnehaha Ave. The speed limit is 25 mph but it is much faster because the traffic signals seem synchronized and I rarely have to stop.

My 2 cents.
- Alec Gorjestani

Top of page

(11-01-02)

Please, please, bring the limit up to where it was designed - 50 mph.

I grew up near Minnehaha Creek, and I remember the many arguments for keeping it the same. But that was a long time ago, when there were far fewer cars and Hiawatha was a narrow and dangerous road. Oncoming trucks scared the daylights out of me.

But I drive the new, wider highway every work day from Eagan to Downtown and back, and the difference in speed between the vast majority of the traffic and those few that hold to 35 is dangerous. Especially those "left-lane vigilantes" that think they are doing the world a favor by enforcing the limit. Now I read that there is some group that wants it lowered to *below* 35 around the train stations. Give me a break - I'd get rear-ended! There are too many cars on the road to play political games with my safety.
- Lorri Sullivan

Top of page

(10/30/02)

The 35MPH speed limit is nothing new. Hwy 55 was always presented with this speed when the plans were released for the road.

See the June 1993 issue of Longfellow Nokomis Messenger, and a year before that in 1992, when the current plans were first presented. The 35MPH speed limit was specifically addressed. Even in the Location and Design Study in March 1981, there was a 40MPH speed limit on the road.

Many groups have fought Hwy 55 from the beginning, to keep it from becoming a freeway like 35W, as it was proposed to be in the late 1950's. 35MPH speed limits was an issue won by local area resident groups.

That's why the speed limit is there, not because of temporary construction.
- Tom Holtzleiter

Top of page

(10/30/02)

I think it's ridiculous for the city to try to keep an artificially low speed limit. People are smart enough to recognize the speed the road is designed for, and they will mostly drive at that speed, regardless of what the signs say. That is clearly what people are already doing.

Trying to enforce a lower limit just creates contempt for the law--and justifiably so!
- Tim Bonham

Top of page

(10/29/02)

A number of streets in Minneapolis and St. Paul have a 35 mile-per-hour speed limit. Portland and Park Avenues are examples. These are ordinary residential streets; whereas Hiawatha has limited access and thus can safely handle greater speeds.

The 35 mph limit on Hiawatha originally was a compromise to placate opponents who objected to a higher speed limit. This compromise (along with others) enabled construction to proceed after decades of dilly-dallying.

Now that practical experience shows no severe traffic accident incidence when drivers are driving 45 and 50 and 55 mph on Hiawatha Avenue as they do every day, it makes sense to raise the speed limit to 45 or even 50 mph.

When the Hiawatha LRT is operating, we will need faster traffic on Hiawatha Avenue to offset the delays caused by LRT traffic controls.

We are wise to amend our ways as circumstance change.
- Herb Weyrauch

Top of page

|  Hwy 55:  1  2  3   |  Index  |