[O]n her last public appearance of a three-day tour of the Queen City, Mayor Betsy Hodges of Minneapolis offered Burlington residents a glimpse into the world of her exceedingly bike-friendly midwestern metropolis.
Mayor Hodges came to Burlington on the invitation of Local Motion, a local pro-bike nonprofit. This is the only visit she’s doing of this kind, other than a brief visit to her alma mater Bryn Mawr College. She kicked off her tour of Burlington with a Sunday afternoon bike ride around Vermont’s largest city. Tuesday night, before she flies back to Minneapolis, she told the audience at Contois Auditorium that advocacy and careful planning were keys to making a city more bikable.
Mayor Miro Weinberger, who introduced her at the event, drew attention to some advocacy groups working in Burlington. “We are on the cusp of change in large part because of the work that AARP and Local Motion has done,” he said.
In four public appearances, she has met with Weinberger’s staff to share ideas, he said.
Hodges champions “inclusive growth,” a hallmark of her administration. For example, she said the city opened a rail line between the downtowns of the Twin Cities — Minneapolis and St. Paul — and deliberately organized the line so it runs through low-income areas.
“It’s not the fastest way between the two downtowns,” she said. “And that’s not the point.”
Better transit for lower income people and people of color has helped the local economy, Hodges said.
Minneapolis holds a spot on the list of the top 20 bike cities in the world, and it is the only American city to make that list.
“The story of biking in Minneapolis is a story of multiple generations making investments in our quality of life and in the process changing our culture,” she said.
Minneapolis invested heavily in biking improvements under Hodges. By 2020, Minneapolis hopes to build 30 miles of protected bike lanes on top of the 129 miles of on-street bikeways and 97 miles of off-street bikeways already in place. Burlington can see similar change, she said.
“The sustainability work you do here is legendary,” she said. “Biking is part and parcel of that.”
Answering a question from an audience member, Hodges touted the benefits of having comprehensive plans instead of many standalone projects with the same general goal. Burlington’s aspirations to be more bikeable and walkable have been hampered by this, according to Emily Boedecker, executive director of event co-sponsor Local Motion.
“Plans are great things,” Hodges said. “Plans focus attention, plans express priorities and plans attract resources.”
Minneapolis’ city council adopted their Cycling Master Plan in 2011 and has attracted substantial investment, Hodges said. Every new or rebuilt street has bike-friendly improvements, she said.
She and her team are wary of negatives to development projects, such as more congestion due to loss of a lane. They plan carefully, she said, but in the end she leans toward action.
“Sometimes you’re going to try stuff and it’s not going to work,” she said. “But it’s better to try stuff and get most stuff right and a couple things wrong than not try anything, because then you’re getting everything wrong.”
Glenn McRae, director of the Northeast Transportation Workforce Center at UVM, was at the talk in Contois Auditorium and said Hodges’ Minneapolis represents a “sister-like” city to Burlington.
“There’s a safety concern for people being able to move around effectively and efficiently,” McRae said. “Vermonters need mobility choices other than cars.”
Burlington is developing a Walk/Bike Master Plan akin to the one that was developed by Minneapolis.
“It’s really important to have a look at a city who is just beyond that so little bit of the inspiration,” said Local Motion director Boedecker. “If needed, we get the courage to take those big steps.”
