Saint Paul Prioritizes Community and Transit Along I-94, Rejects Highway Expansion
We’re making progress in the fight for walking, biking, and transit solutions that put communities and climate first when I-94 is reconstructed! This winter, with support and pressure from Move Minnesota, partners, and community members, the City of Saint Paul took public action to prioritize people and transit along I-94 and reject any plan that would widen the highway.
On February 3, the Saint Paul City Council unanimously passed the formal I-94 resolution we were seeking. With this resolution, the City of Saint Paul is saying that MnDOT reconstruction “must redesign the highway corridor to prioritize healthy, safe, affordable, accessible, and equitable mobility.”
The resolution affirms that City of Saint Paul priorities for reconstruction include:
- Prioritizing fast, frequent highway bus rapid transit between downtown Minneapolis and downtown Saint Paul
- Incorporating robust public engagement and co-creating a vision with communities, particularly BIPOC residents and Rondo residents and their descendants who have been displaced by the I-94 construction in the 1960s
- Providing economic opportunities especially for minority- and women-owned businesses, and ensuring reconstruction works to repair–not deepen—economic disparities
- Improve neighbors’ walking, biking, and transit access by addressing structural barriers currently caused by I-94
- Reducing traffic volume and vehicle miles traveled to improve air quality, noise, and health
- Categorically rejecting any lane expansion within the I-94 corridor
You can see the City of Saint Paul’s Rethinking I-94 Resolution (RES 21-164) here.
Reconstruction is a major opportunity to start repairing I-94’s past and present harm, especially on Rondo residents and BIPOC residents along this highway, and to combat the traffic pollution that hurts our neighbors and our climate.
The Twin Cities are united in this! The Minneapolis City Council unanimously passed a similar I-94 resolution in December 2020. This action at the city level is critical because the reconstruction will ultimately require both cities’ approval to move forward.
Huge thanks to local community members who have spoken out and to all councilmembers in both Saint Paul and Minneapolis for their leadership on this issue. We need you to keep raising your voice as these highway reconstruction conversations continue.
What’s Next
We know that I-94 reconstruction is coming. We remain concerned about what this will mean for local communities and for the air and climate we rely on.
Local officials have stepped up by passing these resolutions that share a forward-thinking community vision. We now need MnDOT leadership to do the same! Because the Twin Cities doesn’t need more highway lanes—we need a reconstruction that advances racial equity, protects our climate and health, and prioritizes fast, frequent, and connected public transit.
Help us ensure decision-makers start correcting the mistakes of the past—and build a better future for all. Stay tuned for more opportunities to speak up in the weeks and months ahead.