Did you know that transportation accounted for 35% of all greenhouse gas emissions within Hennepin County in 2019? The County’s climate action plan, currently under development, is an opportunity for Hennepin County to boldly commit to decarbonizing its transportation system by prioritizing clean transportation and increasing walking, biking and transit access for all.
Move Minneapolis read the plan and reviewed the transportation related sections of the draft plan so that you don’t have to! Take a look at what we liked and what needs improvement and then add your own voice to the plan!
Here are two ways to provide feedback before the March 3 comment deadline:
- Attend an online community meeting on Monday, March 1 from 4:00 – 5:30 p.m. RSVP here.
- Share your comments by completing this online feedback form by Wednesday, March 3.
What We Like:
- The plan identifies the negative role that the County’s road network has played in perpetuating environmental racism and health inequities (pg. 41).
- It recognizes that air pollution disproportionately impacts communities of color and calls out the need to reduce vehicle emissions (pg. 19).
- Modifying pavement and sidewalk design standards to accommodate projected changes to freeze/thaw cycles (pg. 29).
- The plan acknowledges the role that land use plays in transportation emissions (pg. 40).
- The inclusion of a vehicle miles traveled (VMT) reduction strategy (pg. 43).
- Expand transit-oriented development (pg. 51).
What Needs Improvement:
- Hennepin County’s goal of an 80% reduction by 2050 is too little, too late. The goal should be amended to achieve an 80% reduction by 2035 and 100% net zero emissions by 2050.
- Update the County’s Complete Streets Policy to better prioritize sustainable transportation users in street design and maintenance and accelerate the reconstruction of county streets that are most dangerous to non-driving users.
- While we applaud the listed strategies to expand pedestrian, bicycle and transit infrastructure, the plan should specifically identify county owned streets to target for implementation.
- The County should commit to implementing flexible work schedules, not just reassessing them (pg. 51).
- The County should eliminate the use of level of service, an engineering measurement that disproportionately favors moving cars rather than people in its transportation projects.
- The plan should direct that new or relocated County facilities must be easily accessible by bicycle and transit service according to Metro Transit’s high-frequency network map.
- The plan should specifically call out the need for improved and expanded transit shelters.
- The plan should prioritize dense development patterns where residents can walk, bike and take transit to meet their basic needs
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