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The practice Freeway
This was taken on a Saturday morning which explains the lack of cars. Transportation is an interesting issue. When it comes to freeways everyone wants an easy commute to work but almost no one wants to live near a freeway. They removed historic homes in our neighborhood to put in this section of 35E. The neighborhood fought the freeway for 15 years.
As a result it is called a parkway, trucks are not allowed on it and the speed limit is 45. It isn't really a parkway it is a freeway with a lower speed limit. It has a design speed of 70, which makes it almost impossible to go 45. In about 10 more years no one will remember for sure why the speed limit on this stretch of freeway is 45. Did the neighborhood win the fight? The houses are gone and the speed limit on the freeway is 45.
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Here's an interesting observation:
What neighborhoods have the worst freeway access in Saint Paul? That would have to be Highland, followed by Mac Groveland.
These are the only neighborhoods which are a half-mile or more from a freeway, outisde of Phalen.
What are the highest value-gaining neighborhoods and which are consistently considered the most "deisrable"? Highland and Mac Groveland.
The Prosecution rests.
My point is that we lost and the freeway is there and they took out some gorgeous historic homes to build it. The damage is done so why not raise the speed limit?
I don't think I have ever gone 45 down this stretch...I would get killed by all the drivers going 70. I tried it once just to see what would happen, and I got some "nice" honks, and bad looks. Thank goodness I was getting off on Grand. It takes the state government 15 years to decide if it wants to even fix a road or widen it, so I don't see them making a quick decision on raising the speed limit any time soon. I am all for an increase in speed limit, as I don't want to get a ticket for going 20 over.
Worse than the speed limit is that they don't allow trucks on that stretch of road. So instead the trucks exit the freeway and drive up Snelling to get back to 94. We have a perfectly good freeway and we make the trucks drive right through our neighborhood. The rich people on the hill had better lawyers than the people on Snelling.
John - mu son sometimes uses a truck for his job to make deliveries and he complains about not being able to use 35. I have seen semi's go down it too.