As we approach the 2026 legislative session for our state, BikeMn continues to focus on how to improve our transportation system for people outside of cars, to make it easier, safer, and more convenient to walk, bike and roll in daily life. We believe that our current system historically has and continues in the present to prioritize the convenience of private automobiles at the expense of public safety, health, community, economy, and overall quality of life. Too much of our public space has been ceded to car-centric infrastructure. Too much of our state and local budgets are spent on propping up an overbuilt road network. Too much danger and harm is inflicted on communities. But it wasn’t always this way, and doesn’t need to continue to be this way. BikeMn’s Legislative Agenda for this session is focused on 3 areas:
Freedom To Move – supporting safe and responsible choices around traffic
Given our current transportation that has been largely designed to prioritize motorized traffic, we are advocating for policies that make our shared transportation spaces safer for all people, especially those outside of motor vehicles. We propose:
– Decriminalizing jaywalking (SF1836 / HF1509) – we support people in making rational decisions around traffic and trust that they are ultimately responsible for their own best interests
– Fully adopt the Idaho stop (HF677-old) – allow bicyclists to treat a red light as a stop sign, and proceed after stopping when it’s safe to do so
– School speed zones (HF1804/SF2094) – the streets around schools should be safe at all times of day
– Crosswalk definition (HF1804/SF2094) – a minor change to include all crosswalks including at mid-block
– Safe passing distance (HF2361-old) – change to “greater of 3 feet or half the width of the vehicle” so that this could be more easily enforced
– E-moto definition (Rep. Dippel) – create a new class for electric motos that do not comply with the 3-class system – usually too fast and/or too powerful – to make enforcement and education simpler
– Super speeders (Rep. Kraft) – enhanced penalties for drivers caught driving 20+ mph over the limit
Sustainability & Flexibility in Transportation – designing a transportation system that works for all users and can be sustained
The transportation system in our state is one of the largest public investments we have, and it’s crucial that it’s managed responsibly. The deferred maintenance of just the state-owned roads is expected to outpace current funding by $20B over the next 18 years (the situation is even worse for most county and local roads). Fiscal responsibility in transportation means we need to shift from dumping resources into the least-efficient and most harmful travel mode -the personal automobile- and refocus on investments that provide greater returns on lower costs. Too often our roads are overbuilt as highways, when they ought to be designed as streets with lower speeds and human-scale comfort, particularly in urbanized or commercial areas. Current road design standards often do not prioritize safe and legal traffic behaviors (eg driving the speed limit, or yielding to pedestrians), nor facilitate spaces to be effectively used by multiple modes. We can start to fix this by:
– Clearly defining “Highway purposes” (SF817/HF186) (SF1972/HF1630) – Trunk highway funds should be allowed to support all modes, such as sidewalks, pedestrian lighting, enhanced crosswalks, off-street bike lanes, and transit stops
– Fix it First, Fix it Right (Rep Koegel) – as our state DOT struggles to pay for upkeep on our existing roads, and is planning for reduced vehicle miles traveled in the future, now is the right time to require that we have a plan to fund our existing maintenance liabilities before we consider creating any new ones
– Simplifying Mn State Aid (MSA) exemptions (SF2162) – our state created and uses an entirely separate set of design rules for roads that have received state funding, which adds unnecessary cost and complexity, and often prohibits enhanced safety designs from being included, even when they’re part of federally recognized traffic design guides
Accountability – providing oversight to ensure processes are working as intended
Although Minnesota has passed some very good laws and policies related to transportation, these are not always consistently carried out in practice. An example is our state’s Complete Streets policy, that means addressing the safety and access needs of users of all ages and abilities and considering the needs of people walking, biking, and taking transit, motorists, commercial vehicles, and emergency vehicles moving along and across roads. MnDOT is supposed to follow a Complete Streets approach in all phases of planning, scoping, design, implementation, operations, and maintenance activities, but too often this gets sidestepped or “compromised” out of a project with no recourse. Similarly, MnDOT is supposed to be planning for and implementing a reduction in vehicle miles traveled (VMT), as well as a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, but we’re not seeing any progress on these legislatively required actions. We are asking for more mechanisms to provide transparency and accountability, such as:
– Inspector general for state agencies, including MnDoT (SF856/HF1338) (SF1219/HF1) – this would create an office of IG to oversee agency compliance with legislation such as the policies above
– Project evaluation portal (Rep. Koegel) – this would require projects to share and track intended outcomes through standardized evaluation metrics
BikeMN is also proud to support the legislative efforts of allied organizations, including:
Our Streets Minnesota:
– Community preferred analysis (SF817/HF186)
– Cumulative impacts (SF817/HF186)
Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota
Sierra Club
Neighbors 4 More Neighbors
ISAIAH
Great Plains Institute
Rails to Trails Conservancy
Move Minnesota