Martin Olav Sabo Bridge

It’s pretty, I like to photograph it, but I dread the climb on my heavy vintage Schwinn World Tourist & would prefer to wait out the light across Hiawatha.
Though I must say, it feels like a huge accomplishment when I’m able to reach the apex without exhausting all of my gears.

The Martin Olav Sabo Bridge is a great investment in biking as a serious transit option.
Unfortunately, like many of the investments by the city I have many, many quibbles about the particulars.
But you know what? I don’t let those quibbles completely overrule my appreciation of significant investments into the Minnesota biking system.
The Martin Olav Sabo Bridge is a monument, hopefully the first of many, in this city’s quest to be a substantive biking city. It gets you across Highway 55. It extends the Greenway, probably the greatest achievement in Minnesota’s biking infrastructure. Let there be many more.

This bridge is a total insult and joke! It complete does not fit into the neighborhood. And it is not even very useful to bikers. I avoid it when I ride the Greenway. My mom can’t even ride up it going west becaue it is just too sloped for her to use her worn out muscles after a long ride.
It was convinced and designed by people who think they know better about how to spend your money. And it is completely unnecessary to have this bridge. The notion is that is helps with the Greenway bike route.
Problem is that it cost over $ 5 million dollars to build and you have to go a total of 4 blocks out of your way to use it (2 one way and 2 back).
I did a count on a busy Saturday afternoon during the summer. 75 people used this. this was a super busy day for bike riders (sunny and nice temps). Lots of riders out that day. Great day for a ride. etc. etc. 75 people (total…counting both directions. and some people were counted twice because they went east and came back west… I counted such a person as being «2 uses»). So, even if every day of the entire year was as busy as this day, and you had this count for 30 years (the expected life of the bridge), it costs $ 6 per «use». $ 6!!!
And that doesn’t consider maintenance and repairs over those 30 years. the fact is the average daily use of this bridge is likely closer to 10 people (average over an entire year). To that puts the cost at over $ 45 per use.
Think about it people. We (the city, the county, and the Feds) spent $ 5 million on this bring. Your tax money went to pay for this thing. We have homeless people who need this money. but, what? We need a gaudy bridge that doesn’t fit the area? Did I mention it doesn’t fit the area? ;)
Did I mention that there is safe way to cross Hiawatha just 2 blocks south that is directly on the Greenway path and that is faster for biker riders? Did I mention that most biker riders use that street level crossing rather than use this bridge? Did I mention that there is yet another brand new bridge a couple of blocks to the north of this one that practically no one uses?
$ 45 per use! Gross! Ugly! a crying shame!

Minnesota’s first cable stay suspension bridge!
At first I thought: I am going to climb that on my bike?
Then I thought: I won’t have to wait at the stupid light at Hiawatha anymore! Glory be.
The climb isn’t that steep, and the view is pretty nice once there. You can sit on these benches there, or just keep pumping those legs cuz you have another 7 miles to go…
So thank you Martin Olav Sabo!