Take Action: Final Lyndale Design Proposal Needs to Put People First!
Since the reconstruction project kicked off in 2023, the Livable Lyndale campaign has mobilized thousands of community members around a vision for a road redesign that puts people first. Last month, despite clear demands from neighborhood residents and visitors, Hennepin County released a final design that will compromise, rather than enhance, the safety and comfort of people biking, walking and taking public transit along this critical corridor.
Tell Hennepin County that we need a Livable Lyndale that includes separated bike lanes, spacious sidewalks and a dedicated bus lane!
In October 2024, Hennepin County released promising initial designs. The Orange option took exciting steps toward the Livable Lyndale vision we envision, including a separated bikeway and a stretch of dedicated bus lanes. We advocated for the county to improve the bike lane design and extend the dedicated bus lane in the final design; instead the proposal they released last month takes us backwards.
The Lyndale reconstruction is a 50- to 80-year investment, and pedestrian, bike, and public transit infrastructure is critical to Hennepin County achieving its Climate Action Plan. Last night, members of the Livable Lyndale campaign attended the county’s Open House to call for improvements to the final design, including:
A Bikeway Separated from the Sidewalk
The proposed final design eliminates the separated bikeway and instead includes a Shared Use Path, creating conflict and discomfort for all users, whether they walk, bike or roll. People who already commute by bike will be forced to choose between navigating pedestrian traffic and sharing a road designed for cars.
A Vibrant Pedestrian Experience
Walking along Lyndale should feel pleasant and welcoming — in addition to being safe. This reconstruction offers an opportunity to build on the vibrancy of the commercial corridor and draw in more people to visit and linger. A Shared Use Path is not conducive to strolling, dining, and shopping. We need the redesign to reinstate elements like benches, planters, bike racks, midblock crossings, placemaking elements, and other amenities. We also need the design to make sure transit stations don’t overcrowd sidewalks, remove patios, and obstruct storefront sightlines.
Improved Transit Performance from Day One
Instead of a clear plan to implement a dedicated bus lane on Lyndale, the final design includes a 12-foot parking lane with bumpouts. We need a design that provides better transit performance now for the existing Route 4 and doesn’t require the inefficient use of taxpayer dollars to remove the bumpouts in just a few years for the arrival of bus rapid transit. The final design must include strategic stretches of bus lanes that allow buses to skip to the front of the line at congested intersections, including 28th, 26th and 24th streets.
Traffic Calming and Increased Safety
Right now, the overwhelming sentiment among residents and visitors alike is that Lyndale Avenue prioritizes speeding cars over people’s safety. To calm traffic, we need narrowed driving and parking lanes — but the final proposed design does the opposite, widening parking lanes and perpetuating higher driving speeds. We need improvements that remove excessive turn lanes, minimize pedestrian crossings to four lanes or fewer, and create raised crosswalks for better experience and improved safety for people walking.
This reconstruction is a once-in-a-generation opportunity and a significant public investment — let’s make sure it creates a corridor that meets the needs of residents today and supports the vitality of generations to come. Join us in urging the county to make critical improvements to the final proposed design, including a separated bikeway, spacious sidewalks and improvements to bus infrastructure!
Share your feedback with the county and sign our letter calling for improvements to the proposed final design.
Then, mark your calendar to join us for a Stroll and Roll on October 4 to demonstrate to Hennepin County how crowded and uncomfortable it would be to have a shared use path on Lyndale!
Learn more and get involved in our campaign here!