how possible is to be carfree in minneapolis? (St. Paul, Bloomington: apartments, neighborhood)

[toughyreader]

Hello All,
My wife and I are trying to make a change in our life. We have lived/worked in Texas all of our life and want to try something new. Minneapolis is in our top 5 cities to move to as I have been 4 times for work and really liked it. Two questions...

1. How realistic is it to live with out a car? I commute to work by bike here and it is ok but we still have to have 2 cars for groceries and the like. I would not be opposed to keeping one car. I am just tired of feeling like I have to have a car.

2. What would be a nice laid back area for a couple in their late 20's to live.
More than likely we will be working downtown... I would like a live in an area that has lots of place to walk to.

thanks for any info you have to offer!

[golfgal]

There are plenty of areas where you can live without a car in the twin cities metro area. If you work anywhere on Nicollet Ave or near there, getting around by bus or lightrail is simple. Winter is a little tough to bike but there are some people that do that. It really comes down to where you end up working. When you start applying for jobs, do a reality check and make sure the office really is in downtown Minneapols or St. Paul or where ever. Often a business will list that they are in Minneapolis and are actually in Golden Valley, Minnetonka or someplace outside of the city itself. That will make car free transportation more difficult, but not impossible.

[K-Luv]

1-Totally realistic. There is a huge bike culture in Minneapolis, but MPLS is not exactly bike friendly. Far too many car drivers will cut you you off and generally act like you are not even there.

2-I would suggest the Whittier neighborhood or the Uptown area.

[nick is rulz]

Originally Posted by K-Luv

1-Totally realistic. There is a huge bike culture in Minneapolis, but MPLS is not exactly bike friendly. Far too many car drivers will cut you you off and generally act like you are not even there.

generally anytime Ive ever "cut off" a biker, its been because he or she blasted thru a stop sign. I love how bikers have the attitude that they need to be treated equally and given the same respect as other people on the road but that goes by the wayside when it comes to obeying basic traffic laws.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by nick is rulz

generally anytime Ive ever "cut off" a biker, its been because he or she blasted thru a stop sign. I love how bikers have the attitude that they need to be treated equally and given the same respect as other people on the road but that goes by the wayside when it comes to obeying basic traffic laws.

I would have to agree with this statement 100%. Too many bikers do not obey BIKE rules of the road, which do NOT include riding down the middle of the CAR driving lanes, especially on roads where the speed limit is 55 or above. We did have some police ticket some bike riders in our area not too long ago for riding on the road vs the bike path.

[nick is rulz]

I always see people blast down the hill on their bikes at the Franklin/Lyndale intersection. No slowing down to see if anyones turning or even acknowledge their surroundings.

Critical Mass doesnt make me support them, either. Blocking traffic and being rude on the road pretty much guarantees no ones going to offer up support. I think they should do critical mass on West Broadway.

[Minnehahapolitan]

Let's lay off critical mass debates, they won't help anyone. Mpls. is bike-friendly, and has the second highest rate of ridership behind Portland. Winter doesn't help, but you will see some diehards in January. There are alot of recreational trails in both city and suburb, and the city does a fairly decent job of having bike lanes. If you had one car, and lived in a place with good buses to get to work, you would be perfectly comfortable. Having one car limits you to city and some urban suburbs like Bloomington, Saint Louis Park, et. cetera. Having no car usually means living in the very urban areas of Mpls, inc. Uptown, Whittier, University, et. cetera. Metrotransit has a high-frequency network of buses, I believe Nicollet, Hennepin and Chicago and Central Aves run at least every 15 minutes. Light Rail down Hiawatha runs with regularity also.

If you want an area with alot to walk to, I would look Uptown (Hennepin bus, alot of commercial activity, trendier, gentrified), Whittier(Nicollet bus, "Eat Street" restaurants, Mpls. Inst. of Arts, older architecture, grittier and less gentrified, very vibrant), Northeast (Central bus, old eastern Euro. immigrants, now a blue-collar/trendy vibe closer to downtown with alot of ethnic restaurants further out), Lake Street, and Loring Park (Hennepin bus, the trad. Gay neighborhood, old brownstone apartments and some 70s-80s highrises, quieter, convenient to Dwtn, around a great city park). You can also move right downtown. Undergoing somewhat of a renaissance, with a population of 30,000. Close to Metrodome, Twins Stadium, Nicollet Mall for shopping, Guthrie Theatre, a gourgeous riverfront, Orch. Hall, et. cetera. The downtown area is pretty clean and safe. Wish you the best
---Minnehahapolitan

[music7lover]

You don't need a car to live in Minneapolis. Plenty of buses and bike trails.

[kuan]

Easy! Here's a good site

Minneapolis Bike Love ~ Index

[nick is rulz]

Originally Posted by Minnehahapolitan

Let's lay off critical mass debates, they won't help anyone.

Why? I think its a decent topic of conversation. Im certainly not an anti-bike individual. I dunno...it would bring a topic of discussion here beyond the "wheres the crime" and "what suburb should I live in" posts that are usually all thats listed.