What the Twin Cities Do Better Than Anywhere Else in the US

Wait! STAAAWWWWP. You didn't wanna read the rest of the comments anyway, just this one! Get Nebula using my link for 40% off an annual subscription: go.nebula.tv/citynerd

The point you made about people having a hard time differentiating "feeling a little uncomfortable" from being in "imminent danger" was SO good. Thanks for keeping that in.

I once stayed at a hotel in Minneapolis that offered free bikes to its guests while they were staying there. It quickly turned into one of my favorite business trips as I used the bike network to explore multiple lakes, neighborhoods, and restaurants. The bike infrastructure of MSP is just incredible.

About Minneapolis streets being too wide... Minnesota streets are overbuilt. They are wider than in most parts of the country. The reason is that they need somewhere to push the snow onto during the winter. The extra width of the street can become walls of snow wider and taller than you are and it takes several days for crews to relocate all that excess snow. So, they just plow overnight so kids can go to school in the morning and then worry about the snow mounds later. Long crossing distances are just an unfortunate side effect. It's a Minnesota reality even in the smallest towns.

Public access to lakes and beaches is so underrated. I feel that is what has spoiled a lot of Hawaii’s beaches - they aren’t publicly accessible and have homes built on the sand dunes. Would be amazing to see you do a video on that!

As a resident, I have to say you nailed it. I will say that when the snow piles up, those wide streets feel pretty narrow. Nice work!

As silly as it is, the MSP light rail is what made me start considering transit in America. Going from airport to downtown easily and cheaply, walking around the area, light rail to university, walking to stone bridge. Growing up in Texas you don’t even look for transit. MSP made me start checking for those rare occasions when it’s actually present

Minneapolitan here. Skyways are really appreciated both this time of year (90’s temps with awful humidity) and during the long cold winters. Also, wider streets downtown really help with snow removal during those long winters. The way the city lakes are interconnected and how nobody can build houses right on those lakes is definitely stellar about Mpls. We obviously love our lakes here!

I need you to know that Minneapolis is home to the academy of the blind. Our streets fill with snow so we need wider roads. The pedestrian signals are really important for our street accessibility.

Time to drop everything and watch Minneapolis/St. Paul get a spotlight

FYI the LED boards displaying the "watch for pedestrian" messages - those boards display other messages, such as when snow emergencies are declared. "watch for pedestrians" is just some filler text when there are no other active notices.

I think you may have missed the point about the large button pedestrian controls with announced countdown for crossing. These were installed specifically for the safety of blind and low-vision pedestrians. We have a relatively large blind population in Minneapolis. There are also bumpy metal plates installed where crosswalks meet the road which were designed to alert someone using a mobility aid like a white cane. Great video, tho!

The “eyesore rapid flashing beacons” have made for safe and comfortable pedestrian crossings on what was a very dangerous street. They are great.

"It comes as kind of a shock to me that the Golden Gophers actually practice." LOL! Also, definitely make a visit to St. Paul.

Couple of notes as someone who lived in Minneapolis for 6 years and has just moved back home to Philly. Loved many parts of Minneapolis, but I could not handle the cold. In the past few years they've been making really good steps towards approving their infrastructure. - Aside from Hennepin (clubs), downtown is a complete wasteland at night. It makes it quite easy to bike through, but unless they are clubbing, the vast majority of people go out in neighborhoods like northeast, uptown, cedar-riverside, como etc. Many of the skyways close at night too, so it's a system that receives traffic only at very specific times. - Lyndale Ave was up until recently a 4 lane road with no turn lanes and very little pedestrian crossings. I've witnessed and had myself multiple near misses from people turning left before the road diet. It's not perfect now, but cars drive much slower now and the pedestrian crossings with the flashing yellow lights are a significant upgrade to the completely absent pedestrian crossings on a 4 block stretch. Lake, Lyndale, and Hennepin are still far to wide to be comfortable for pedestrians, but every indication is that they're actually working on improving things. I believe lake is undergoing a redesign to incorporate a new BRT line, and hopefully a road diet. Similar changes are happening on Hennepin. I still have always opted towards walking/biking on any other side street as none of the 3 are pleasant to walk on. Another project in that neighborhood which I'm sad I'm missing out on is the Bryant ave reconstruction. https://www.minneapolismn.gov/government/projects/bryant-ave-s-reconstruction/ - The boarded up storefront was a mini target up until may, not sure what is going in place of it. - The kmart is finally getting torn down, they're doing surveys on what people want. They are planning on reconnecting nicollet, and they currently are surveying/planning what to develop on the site. There's some implied possibility of extending the pedestrian/transit corridor of downtown nicollet, which would be far more successful as nicolett through whittier (eat street), gets far more foot traffic https://www2.minneapolismn.gov/government/programs-initiatives/new-nicollet/ In all, it seems that Minneapolis is very serious about improving many of the problems you mentioned in this video. Downtown is still unpleasant, and it's really unclear what their plan is on improving it as they've failed to bring back too many office workers. I've seen a lot of progress in all the surrounding neighborhoods, and their BRT network expansion plans seem to be happening quickly! There's also been some serious conversations about redesigning i94 https://talk.dot.state.mn.us/rethinking-i94

Minneapolis was the first Midwest city I ever visited. I was blown away by the community, infrastructure, and sense of place. I spent a week exploring the city and didn't want to leave. I was surprised, I had always heard of the Midwest as a cold, boring place. Much to the contrary. The entire Midwest is experiencing a revival, and in my opinion their cities are creating the best value proposition for young people looking for professional or community opportunities. I've now spent significant time in other Midwest cities - Kansas City, St Louis, Chicago, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Fargo, Sioux Falls, Omaha, Lincoln...and I am filled with joy each time I get to see the true Heartland.

I grew up here! Seeing some of my old stomping grounds is bitter sweet. Quick note about those wide roads and crossing timers: Yes it's a bit much in the summer months, but remember the winters. If it snows enough for a Minnesotan to notice, the outer lanes become snow banks leaving enough lanes for the city to still function.

It's really weird knowing city nerd walked by my apartment. Also, those ped crossings on lyndale are obnoxious, but that just got changed from 4 lane road to 2+turn lane dueing the pandemic and it has been AMAZING.

I think the Skyway is a necessary dystopia. When I worked downtown, I was definitely more connected to the city throughout the winter. Even though I didn't work in a building connected to the Skyway, I knew where I could pop in and out and minimize my time in the cold, and it's cold. I've lived in the Great Lakes region my entire life so I'm not a stranger to winters, but MN is on another level. The interesting thing about that is that winters are far more pleasant than anywhere else I've lived. That first 10 minutes in the cold is the worst part, and then if you are dressed appropriately it's easy to bear. Alternately in Toronto and Detroit, it's hard to dress for the weather as truly cold days are less constant. Back to the original subject, if it were not for the Skyways, we wouldn't have The Replacements 'Skyway', and that is a dystopia I wouldn't want a part of. I also have to laugh at "Minnesota Nice" extending to watching out for the police.

"Which they're trying to rebrand as Eat Street" That was 20+ years ago, and it worked.