Bikeways Information
The bikeways data described and mapped below is a result of a multi-year effort between the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the Land Management Information Center, the Metropolitan Council and local governments. The bikeways data represents the best available regional information. Since the bikeways data is an aggregation of data from a variety of sources, the quality of the underlying data varies with source organization. Users can feel confident using the data for regional planning purposes. Care should be exercised for higher resolution uses since the geographic accuracy, attribute completeness, and timeliness of the data is not uniform for the entire region.
The regional bikeways dataset was created by the Minnesota Dept of Transportation (MNDOT) in 2003. It has been maintained and updated by the Land Management Information Center (LMIC) through contract with the Metropolitan Council.
The bikeways dataset includes bicycle routes within nine metropolitan counties: Anoka, Carver, Chisago, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, Washington, and Wright. The bikeways are from a number of sources including the Metro Bicycle Network map book (2001), supplemented by information from maps published by city, state, county and regional government agencies, and city and county planning maps. The map shows on-road and off-road bikeways, proposed and existing bikeways, and includes bike lanes, bike-able road shoulders of over five feet in width, and off-road trails.
The Bicycle and Pedestrian Section, Office of Transit of the Minnesota Department of Transportation, developed the electronic bikeways map and GIS database to fill the need for a comprehensive inventory of bicycle routes in the Twin Cities metro area. The bike route data layer represents an interconnected regional network of bikeways that meet basic criteria as developed by the Metro Bikeway Mapping Advisory Committee and helps to meet the region's goal of increased and safe transportation options.
The map will serve to show existing inventory of bikeways and identify cost-effective bicycle infrastructure opportunities that will interface with local projects. The goal of this effort is to provide planning guidance to build a bicycle transportation network for the Twin Cities metro area.
For complete information on the components of this dataset, see the Metro Bikeways Metadata.