on November 09, 2020

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Minneapolis to Reduce Traffic Lanes and Parking on Hennepin Ave. in Uptown

Written by Tom Steward

Minneapolis remains a no-go zone for many due to an epidemic of car jackings, outbreak of shootings and other violent crime and overall threat to their personal safety. But just in case that’s not enough to keep you at bay, city planners are drawing up more ways to make driving just as onerous for those who do take their chances. The city’s latest offensive on motorists takes aim at one of the busiest commercial corridors in Uptown Minneapolis, according to the Southwest Journal. Hennepin Avenue in Uptown is a busy street, used daily by between 770-3,400 pedestrians, 220-280 cyclists, 6,600 transit riders...

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on October 30, 2020

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Lawmakers Stiff Second Chicago to Twin Cities Amtrak Train in Bonding Bill

Written by Tom Steward

in Transportation

It says a lot when a pet project backed by well-connected lobbyists fails to make the cut in the $1.9 billion bonding bill passed by the Minnesota Legislature filled with lots of other goodies for special interests. Nevertheless that’s what happened to the passenger rail group promoting yet another Amtrak train for taxpayers to subsidize along with the perpetually late arriving Empire Builder line at Union Depot in St. Paul. Supporters claim 124,000 riders will take the proposed train annually, roughly the number of passengers that historically board the existing train. But their timing couldn't have been worse with the Empire Builder...

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on October 25, 2020

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Electric Busses Failing Duluth Test Drive

Written by Tom Steward

in Transportation

Duluth was only too happy to serve as the testing grounds for an Obama-era grant to prove that emissions-free electric busses were the way to go in the era of global warming. It mattered not that the seven vehicles manufactured by an east coast company called Proterra cost almost twice as much as each of the 70 or so diesel busses already in the city's fleet. But John Ramos of the Duluth Monitor reports it's been an uphill battle from the start of service nearly two years ago for the new-age busses. Two months after their unveiling, all seven buses were pulled...

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on October 20, 2020

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Northstar Commuter Train Ridership Plummets 95 Percent

Written by Tom Steward

in Transportation

The Northstar commuter rail line never has lived up to ridership expectations. It's always been a huge loser for taxpayers, who have heavily subsidized every ride taken on the train, including more than $19 for each ticket sold last year. But since the pandemic hit six months ago, Northstar ridership has declined to a mere trickle, tripling the per passenger subsidy this year. The number of riders has plummeted to the point where some elected officials wonder out loud whether it should continue to operate, according to a Star Tribune update. But ridership on Northstar, a commuter train that connects downtown Minneapolis...

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on August 11, 2020

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Northstar train extension likely derailed by COVID budget woes

Written by Tom Steward

in Transportation

The last time cheerleaders for the Northstar commuter train made a move to extend the massively subsidized line beyond Big Lake to St. Cloud, the 2008 Great Recession doomed their pet project. Taxpayers can only hope the new state budget realities caused by COVID-19 lead to the same result as special interest groups unveil the first big study in years proposing to extend both the line and the financial burden on Minnesotans, who already subsidize roughly 80 percent of the cost of each Northstar passenger's ticket, around $20 per ride. Moreover, the construction costs associated with building out the line would be...

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on June 29, 2020

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Department of Vehicles Services in Hot Water Again for Late License Tabs

Written by Tom Steward

in Transportation

The more things change, the more they remain the same at the Minnesota Department of Vehicle Services. Once again the DMV has failed to provide one of the most basic services Minnesotans rely on state government for in a timely manner. As a result, thousands of residents who've paid for their license tab renewal stickers have been left hanging, according to the Star Tribune. Mike McClure mailed his license tab renewal form and fee to the Minnesota Department of Vehicle Services (DVS) in mid-May and expected to have new stickers before his current tabs expired May 31. His check was cashed, but...

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on April 20, 2020

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Minnesotans Don’t Want California Car Mandates, Even If the Natural Resources Defense Council Does

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Transportation

On April 16, 2020 the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) wrote an article entitled "Minnesotans Want Clean Cars: The Oil Industry, Not So Much." The article, which mentions Center of the American Experiment by name, was meant to be a defense of Governor Walz's attempt to force Minnesotans to obey California car mandates for low emissions vehicles and zero emissions vehicles. However, the NRDC article made several easily-refutable claims that merit correcting, and these claims will be discussed below. In reality, American Experiment's polling has found that California's car regulations are deeply unpopular in Minnesota because the vast majority of Minnesotans...

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on April 20, 2020

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Confirmed: The Met Council’s dangerous “transit-oriented development” crusade

Written by Katherine Kersten

in Transportation

The Metropolitan Council is on a crusade to “densify” the Twin Cities, and that means reorganizing our metro area around public transit. The Council’s guiding principle is “transit-oriented development." But the coronavirus pandemic should be a wake-up call that “transit-oriented development” poses risks we previously hadn’t dreamed of....

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on April 16, 2020

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Metro Transit to Limit Bus Ridership During COVID-19 Outbreak

Written by Isaac Orr

in Transportation

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports that Metro Transit will limit the number of riders who can board buses during the COVID-19 outbreak. The new policy is an admission, if not an overt one, that it is difficult to adhere to social distancing guidelines when buses are full. The article reads: Metro Transit announced new steps on Wednesday to promote social distancing on its buses, including a suggestion that passengers wear a mask or face covering while aboard. In addition, Metro Transit said only 10 passengers will be permitted on 40-foot buses, and 15 on 60-foot buses. If a bus is full, its overhead display...

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on April 08, 2020

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Walz Administration Plans to Push Ahead with Controversial California Car Mandates After Coronavirus Situation has Settled

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Transportation

On April 3, 2020, the Walz Administration announced that it still plans on pushing the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) to adopt California's controversial car mandates for low emission vehicles (LEV) and zero emission vehicles (ZEV) in Minnesota before the end of 2020, but that the original timeline would be pushed back as a result of the Coronavirus. While American Experiment has been the leading critic of the Walz Administration's attempt to adopt California's car standards because it will violate the private property rights of auto dealers, increase costs for consumers by $2,000 to $2,500 per vehicle, force auto dealers to...

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