Excelsior uneasy about busy bike crossing

More than 100,000 bike riders roll through downtown Excelsior on the Lake Minnetonka LRT Regional Trail each summer, and city officials worry about their safety.

The trail crosses Water Street at an angle, putting bikers in the middle of the block as they pass through sometimes heavy traffic headed to and from the lakeshore. Nearby flea and farmers markets add pedestrians to the mix of movement.

All the activity and the popularity of the trail -- a regional draw for views of Lake Minnetonka -- argue for a safer crossing, Excelsior City Council members say. They are urging Three Rivers Park District to realign the trail to send it straight across Water Street and make it more visible to motorists.

The city has no record of any accidents at the trail crossing, but two years ago it removed crosswalk markings from the pavement for fear they might give bikers a false sense of security while crossing the street. Now the crosswalk is marked with signs directing bikers to stop and yield to Water Street traffic.

Regular trail users differ on whether the Water Street crossing is a safety problem, but Excelsior merchants say it is.

Kathleen Wahl of south Minneapolis said she often walks her bike across Water Street. "You do have to pay attention going across," she said. "But for a recreational biker on the weekend, it's not unsafe at all."

Bruce Gasperlin of Chanhassen, who rides the trail at least once a week in the summer, said he considers the Water Street crossing more of an annoyance than a safety concern.

"The cars are going slow enough and you feel pretty safe that people are going to stop -- though they may be gawking at the flea market," he said.

But Alan Tenenholtz of Minnetonka, who walks or bikes the trail twice a week in the summer, said he has had some close calls at the crossing. On Saturdays at midday, when downtown traffic can be bumper to bumper, Tenenholtz said, "You are almost playing chicken getting across the street because a lot of the cars won't stop for you."

When traffic backs up at the stop signs at either end of the block, frustrated drivers race forward, not expecting to find the trail crossing at mid-block, Tenenholtz said. His strategy: "Wait for an opening and go, and hope that somebody is going to be paying attention."

Watching the scene from the shops that line Water Street, merchants see room for improvement.

Tom Walsh, an employee of ArtWorks Art and Frame Inc. next to the trail, said drivers don't come to a full stop at the stop signs at either end of the block with the trail crossing. "So it's kind of a hazardous area to walk through anyway. ... It is kind of dangerous from that standpoint."

Matty O'Reilly, owner of the 318 Cafe on Water Street near the trail, said "if the cyclists are careful, I wouldn't call the bike crossing dangerous. But it could be better marked. ... I know this one is a little blind to the driver."

O'Reilly lives in St. Paul and bikes to work in Excelsior, and he said he feels safer on other crossings along the way. On Water Street, "a lot of people drive through without stopping for the bikes," he said.

The city would like the park district to make the trail crossing perpendicular to Water Street, said Excelsior Public Works Superintendent Dave Wisdorf. Squaring up the crossing would require a new cut in the street and sidewalk. The trail could then be angled off Water Street, Wisdorf said.

With a straight crossing, it would be possible to install a median and it would be easier to put up signage, Wisdorf said. "It also may require some designated no-parking on one side to handle visibility problems."

The park district will consider the request this summer, said Don DeVeau, planning and development director for Three Rivers. "We agree that we would like to resolve any issues to improve public safety. This has been discussed for years."

Regular maintenance is planned for the trail, but no other safety improvements are scheduled this summer, DeVeau said.

Elsewhere along the trail, the park district is working with Hopkins on finding a way to connect the trail to Edina. It is also working with the city of Victoria, where the trail ends, to find a way to get people from the end of the trail into the city, DeVeau said.

Laurie Blake • 612-673-1711