Safety at Snelling and University

The photo shows tow trucks, dented vehicles and emergency workers on Snelling Avenue north of St. Anthony, following a collision, May 8, 2007, which closed the I-94 bridge.
Snelling Avenue, between University and Concordia, has the highest collision rate in the State of Minnesota.


I write this as the City of St. Paul proposes alternatives for expanding the car capacity of Snelling, as more big boxes are being considered for the neighborhood, and as proposed Ayd Mill Road construction funnels more traffic to Snelling. Whether the proposed changes to Snelling improve or reduce safety has not been documented by the engineers that presented the plans. The community also raises other issues including alternative north/south routes between Dale and 280 to reduce the traffic on Snelling, land use/zoning and transit oriented design toward development per the principles of Urban Strategies.

Safety concerns at Snelling, near I-94 and University include pedestrian safety, transit oriented development, bike paths and bike safety and car safety.

Little attention has been paid to providing for a safe environment for pedestrians. Pedestrian traffic comes from people of all ages who live in the neighborhood or attend churches in the neighborhood, work nearby, go to a nearby college, or shop nearby. Several of Saint Paul's busiest bus routes criss-cross Snelling and University. Consideration of the safety of pedestrians is not apparant, as there is no walking path through Midway Center to connect the bus stop on Snelling to the bus stop on University. Consideration of the safety of pedestrians should be a key aspect in future development of the area.

To highlight the importance of design toward pedestrian safety, consider the task of crossing Snelling at Spruce Tree. Left-turning cars are challenged to see pedestrians behind vehicles at the Spruce Tree and Snelling stop light, so pedestrians are at risk of getting hit. Once a pedestrian gets across toward Midway Center, the pedestrian is in a traffic lane competing with cars, which are weaving into their proper turn lane. Crossing at University might be safer, but left turning vehicles are still an issue. Crossing at Shields, where there is no pedestrian crossing, is actually safest because it is less likely that a car will turn into you, and because it is there rather than at Spruce Tree, that a sidewalk leads to Midway Shopping Center. Nonetheless, right turns from I-94 to Snelling can make it difficult to get across.

There is no evidence that designers are now considering the needs of pedestrians, as Rainbow expanded in 2006 and took away sidewalk space immediately in front of the building, so pedestrians are now forced to walk on a busy car lane when the narrow sidewalk is crowded. The sidewalk width now matches the neighboring Cub Foods. Wide sidewalks and greenways through Midway Center and the proposed big boxes to the sorth would greatly enhance its safety and appeal, and the safety and appeal for pedestrians using buses or the proposed light rail station. A pedestrian/bike bridge or pedestrian/bike tunnel should be designed above or below Snelling Avenue and University Avenue as part of the development plans.

Bike paths would be welcomed by the neighborhood, as St. Anthony west of Snelling is designed for bikes. Bike storage areas are currently provided at the St. Anthony and Snelling bus stop. Rainbow recently added a bike rack. Development of St. Anthony to the east of Snelling offers an opportunity to extend this biking area with a new bike path. Pascal offers an opportunity for a bike path and pedestrian crossing over I-94 to the neighborhoods and campuses to the south.

The intersections of I-94 and St. Anthony and I-94 and Concordia have the highest traffic accident rates in the state of Minnesota. Shields, near Snelling, is more often than not covered with glass. Left turns from Spruce Tree or the Midway Shopping Center onto Snelling are dangerous because a lane of traffic can block visibility of the second lane of traffic for those making left turns left turns onto Snelling, and because pedestrian crossings compete with cars for a driver's attention. Car insurance rates for zip code 55104, if unregulated, would be double the metro average. A priority of the neighborhood is corrective action to reduce accident rates to something well below the state high. This corrective action should be a primary aspect of any development plans, such as the proposed big boxes and the proposed Ayd Mill Road extension. Expansion of the Midway Shopping Center requires additional streets in the shopping center area and along St. Anthony to safely handle the additional traffic, additional pedestrians, and bikers.